| Name: | Thomas Sutkus |
| Gender: | Male |
| Agency: | Chicago Fire Department |
| Type of Firefighter: | Career |
| Rank: | Captain |
| Type of Duty: | Firefighting operations, Ladder operations, Search and rescue operations |
| Type of Award: | Medal of Valor |
| Year of Award: | 2001 |
| Incident City: | Chicago |
| Year of Incident: | 2000 |
| Incident Location Type: | Residential |
| Incident Attribute: | Fires |
Captain Thomas Sutkus of Truck Company 32 of the Chicago Fire Department received the Medal of Valor for his actions to save the life of a three-year-old girl from a residential fire in Chicago, Illinois on May 26, 2000.
Captain Sutkus, along with the members of Truck Company 32, were called to a house fire on 2705 West 25th Street in Chicago after receiving a radio report that two children were trapped inside. Upon arrival, the Captain noticed smoke pouring out of the kitchen and second-story bedroom windows. He directed two of his men to throw a ladder to the roof to provide ventilation, while Engine 109, who was also on scene, attacked the kitchen fire with their hoses.
After putting on their breathing apparatuses, Sutkus and another firefighter, Leonard Roman, kicked down the front door of the home and entered it. Once inside, they were confronted with zero visibility and intense heat. They made it upstairs and began conducting a search of the bedrooms. In the second bedroom he searched, Sutkus found an unconscious child. He carried her out of the burning building and performed cardiopulmonary resuscitation on her. Sutkus and Roman went back into the house to search again for the second trapped child. It was later discovered that the second child was not in the house and was out of harm’s way.
Citations:"Firefighters Honored for Heroic Actions," The Gong, July-September, 2001.
Journal of the Proceedings of the City Council of the City of Chicago, Illinois, June 28, 2000.