LWers honored for heroic actions at awards dinner

SB POLICE LEAGUE

On June 2, the Seal Beach Police League awarded Mutual 1 residents Jeong Kim and Willie Boudevin lifesaving awards for their heroic actions trying to hold a fire at bay and rescuing a neighbor on Jan. 14.

The 2022 Annual Public Safety Awards Banquet was held at the Old Ranch Country Club to honor outstanding law enforcement, fire and public safety personnel and citizens.

According to the Seal Beach Police League, OCFA Engine 48 and additional units responded to a reported residential structure fire at Building 47, a 16-unit building in Mutual 1.

Upon arrival, the crew found a center unit with heavy black smoke coming out of the door and windows. Jeong Kim and Willie Boudevin were working to hold the fire at bay with garden hoses.

Bystanders informed the crew that the resident of the burning unit had been rescued from the building.

Once the fire was extinguished, OCFA learned that Kim had heard the resident screaming for help. Upon entering the home, Kim found the man lying on a couch that was on fire. The man was unable to escape on his own, so Kim helped him to safety. Boudevin arrived shortly after and he, along with Kim, continued get the resident outside. The two neighbors then found garden hoses and sprayed them through the windows and front door until fire units arrived. “It is our belief that if not for the heroic efforts of these two individuals, the outcome for (the resident) and potentially the surrounding units would have been far more devastating. —Heeja Alameida, LW contributor