Willoughby officers honored at Lake County Association of Chiefs of Police meeting

William Tilton, The News-Herald, Willoughby, Ohio
·2 min read

Mar. 11—Three members of the Willoughby Police Department were honored at the recent Lake County Association of Chiefs of Police's March meeting.

Officer Jackson Hyams received the Medal of Honor and the Life Saving Award while Officer Brandon Zinner and Willoughby Police Dispatcher Tom Seymour both received the Life Saving Award, according to a post on the Willoughby Police Department's Facebook page.

Hyams was given the Life Saving Award and Medal of Honor for two different incidents in 2022.

According to the post, on Oct. 14, Hyams responded to a residence for a person who was in crisis and had severe self-inflicted wounds. Hyams was able to effectively place a tourniquet on the person even though the person fought with him during the entire incident and transport to the hospital.

The person survived because of Hyams' actions.

Then, according to the post, on Oct. 29, a truck drove off the roadway on Vine Street, struck a gas main and a utility pole and then struck a house. A fire quickly engulfed the house and the truck, and Hyams was the first officer on scene.

Citizens helped the driver out of the truck, but the front passenger was trapped inside. Hyams tried pulling the passenger out of the truck and then tried to put out the fire with his fire extinguisher without success. He tried again to pull the passenger out until he succumbed to smoke inhalation and injuries.

Fire personnel advised that no amount of men or women could have pulled the passenger out without mechanical means, according to the post.

In addition, the Lake County Blue Coats Association awarded Hyams with the 2023 Jorge Medina Distinguished Service Award for his unselfish commitment and service to Willoughby and for his actions on October 14 and 29.

Seymour and Zinner were honored for a Jan. 31 incident.

According to the post, Willoughby Police Dispatch received a 911 call with no address location about an unresponsive person with shallow breathing. Seymour was able to locate an address for the emergency and get fire and police units in route. He instructed the caller to perform life-saving CPR measures until help arrived.

According to the post, Zinner was the first responder to arrive on scene. At first, it appeared the person had died from severe trauma and injuries. He checked the person and found that he was still alive and continued the life-saving CPR measures until Willoughby Fire and Rescue could arrive.