On Christmas Day 2014, Okaloosa County Sheriff’s deputies Joseph Trimboli and Eric Keyes responded to a traffic crash on Main Street in Destin. They arrived around 2:56 a.m. to find heavy flames around the rear of the white 2003 Lexus. The flames were spreading to the inside and the driver, who seemed incoherent, was behind the wheel with the windows up and doors locked.
Deputy Keyes had to hit and shatter the passenger side window to get the 45-year old driver from Brandon Florida out alive. The individual’s clothes were already on fire. With the car fully engulfed, deputies Keyes and Trimboli pulled him thrown the broken window, risking their own lives to save the driver’s. The subsequent investigation determined the driver was intoxicated. The man was treated for minor burns and smoke inhalation at Sacred Heart Hospital in Walton County. He later expressed his gratitude for their efforts.
Their actions – putting their own personal safety aside to save the life of another individual – earned deputies Trimboli and Keyes the respect of their co-workers and supervisors – and the Okaloosa County Sheriff’s Office “Medal of Merit”.
Edited Body cam video of the incident is available on our agency YouTube page:
The awards were presented, along with all the OCSO Annual Awards, during a ceremony at 4 p.m. today at the Fellowship Hall at Shalimar Baptist Church.
