July 09, 2010

SC cops honored for saving woman's life

One officer jumped in river and prevented the woman from committing suicide

By Ashley B. Craig
Charleston Newspapers

DUNBAR, N.C. — City officials in Dunbar honored three police officers for their actions last month, when they prevented a woman from committing suicide, and also promoted four firefighters.

Dunbar patrolmen Dave Hudson and Greg Scraggs and Cpl. George Rader were honored during Tuesday evening's regular council meeting, where they were presented with certificates of appreciation and a plaque. Scraggs and Rader, who was absent because of illness, were awarded the city's Meritorious Service Award and Hudson was given the city's Heroism Award.

Mayor Jack Yeager and Police Chief Earl Whittington presented Hudson and Scraggs with their awards. Both officers received a standing ovation from council and the audience.

"It's these types of actions that determine the kind of person you are," Whittington said.

Hudson, Scraggs and Rader all responded to the report of a woman on a dock on the Kanawha River near 10th Street attempting to end her life. Hudson dove into the river after the woman - ruining his duty belt and bulletproof vest - and pulled her to safety, much to her dismay at the time. Whittington said the woman, a 44-year-old South Charleston resident, resisted being rescued and cussed the officers as they worked to get her to safety.

Council also promoted four firefighters after the retirement of Fire Chief Terry Lilly, who was a firefighter for 26 years before retiring in June. Council named Greg Giles fire chief during Tuesday's meeting. Giles, who has been a firefighter for 18 years, was formerly the deputy fire chief.

Also promoted were David "Butch" Ellis to deputy fire chief, Mike Huffman to assistant fire chief and Jason Berger to captain.

Yeager said promotions in the police department were planned for next council meeting.

In other news, officials announced that they were looking at ways to repair a large sinkhole that formed near the roadway on Valley Drive last week. The city was deluged with roughly 3 inches of rain before the hole appeared.

Yeager said the hole is especially dangerous because no one knows exactly how deep it is. He said the city was looking for an engineering firm to investigate the hole and repair it.

On Tuesday, the city council also accepted a federal Justice Assistance Grant to keep Sgt. John Little, Dunbar Middle's prevention resource officer, at the school. The grant was awarded in the amount of $28,500.

City officials also named Shawn Boggess as July's Distinguished Citizen. Boggess, the mayor said, has worked for the city in some way or another since she was 9 years old. She now serves as the city's deputy clerk.

Finally, council members voted to buy a used police K-9 SUV from the city of Nitro. Yeager said the vehicle had about $4,000 worth of equipment already installed and that Nitro wanted $4,000 for the vehicle. The vehicle will be refurbished for Dunbar and likely used by Sgt. S.E. Elliott.