Modesto Irrigation District lineworkers Jimmy Boere and Brian Szuggar recently rescued a man trapped in a truck in an irrigation canal near a job site. Their heroic actions were recognized by the California public power utility’s Board of Directors at a recent board meeting.
The rescue occurred on the evening of October 4.
Boere and Szuggar were performing scheduled outage work for a planned job at Great Valley Academy. They were alerted to an emergency by the school janitor that there was a truck submerged in a nearby canal with someone trapped inside.
When arriving at the submerged truck which was just down the road from their work site, they saw an elderly man moving but trapped in the truck, partially submerged in four feet of water.
Climbing into the bed of the truck, they worked together to free the man and safely pull him from the truck.
At the Oct. 28 meeting, Esteban Martinez, Assistant General Manager-T&D at MID, recommended a resolution of commendation for the lineworkers.
Boere and Szuggar “are outstanding examples of our MID employees rising to the occasion, reacting quickly in a high-pressure situation, and going above and beyond to protect the life of another,” Martinez said.
The motion for the resolution was passed and Boere and Szuggar received plaques at the meeting that included framed copies of the Board’s resolution of commendation.
