Warren County Fire and Rescue firefighter presented with the Higgins and Langley Lifetime Achievement Award

On Sunday, June 3^rd, Warren County Fire and Rescue Firefighter George Lewis traveled to South Bend, Indiana, where he was presented the Higgins and Langley Lifetime Achievement Award for his work as a Swiftwater and Flood Rescue Specialist, Program Instructor, Instructor Trainer, Course/Program Developer and Mentor to thousands of swiftwater and flood response students since 1995.

In the late 1990’s, Firefighter Lewis was instrumental in working with your volunteer response system in the creation and development of our County-wide Water Response Program. In 2006, Firefighter Lewis retired from Fairfax County Fire and Rescue and became a full-time employee for our Department in 2010.  Firefighter Lewis remains a vital part of the training our career and volunteer response system in the areas of Swiftwater Rescue and Boat Operations.

George Lewis receiving the Higgins and Langley Lifetime Achievement Award

The Higgins and Langley Memorial Awards in Swiftwater Rescue honor outstanding achievement in the technical rescue discipline of swiftwater and flood rescue. They are not heroism awards, but rather recognize preparedness, teamwork, and a job well done, sometimes under extreme conditions, where training is vital to the success of rescue missions, as well as the safety of rescue personnel.  Firefighter Lewis also received the Higgins and Langley Incident Response Award in 1997 for a water rescue on the Potomac River.

Fire Chief Richard E. Mabie, stated “It is a tremendous privilege to see the many years of hard work and dedication Firefighter Lewis provided, not only our community, but the national and international swiftwater and floor rescue response communities honored”.  Flooding is the leading cause of weather related death worldwide. Rescuers who lack proper swiftwater/flood rescue training and equipment are at risk of serious injury and loss of life. Every year, would-be rescuers, both citizens and professionals, die in swiftwater incidents. “Due to the many hours and hard work of Firefighter Lewis has provided in the training of our first responders, countless lives have been saved” stated the Chief.