ISP honors heroes

November 22, 2011

On Monday, November 21, Idaho State Police District Five held a ceremony to honor the heroic deeds of Sergeant John Kempf, Detective Paul Olsen, and Corporal David Noyes. The three officers were involved in three separate incidents in that past several months. A brief overview of each incident follows. (Editor's note: This article is mostly unedited and written in the dry words of an ISP public information officer. I have altered tense and added commas, but otherwise changed nothing. I leave it to readers to look beyond the dry prose, and pray that you'll be as grateful as I am that such good people take so much pride in serving us so well. This article is published on behalf of all who serve and protect.) Sergeant Kempf received the Idaho State Police Silver Star Award. Here is a brief account of the incident: On June 7, 2011, at approximately 10:30 p.m., Sergeant John Kempf came upon a crash in the median of I84 near milepost 195. As he approached the scene he observed the tractor portion of a tractor trailer on its side and on fire. He was the first emergency responder on scene. Sergeant Kempf and a citizen approached the tractor and heard cries for help coming from inside the cab. The tractor was lying on its side and Sergeant Kempf and the citizen had to climb on top to open the door. Once on top they observed the driver, who was severely injured, inside the cab. Sergeant Kempf and the citizen pulled the driver free of the cab and with the help of other citizens, carried him approximately 25 yards away from the tractor. Approximately 20 seconds later the tractor exploded and became fully engulfed in flames. The driver was severely injured and could not have extricated himself from the tractor. He would have undoubtedly perished in the fire were it not for the heroic actions of Sergeant Kempf. Detective Paul Olsen recieved the Idaho State Police Lifesaving Award. Here is a brief account of the incident: On June 22, 2011, at approximately 8:00 pm, Detective Olsen happened on the scene of a single vehicle crash on I-86 at milepost 30. The vehicle, an eight passenger Suburban, had been carrying eleven individuals including the driver. As a result of the crash, six of the occupants were ejected and three were killed instantly. Detective Olsen was the first emergency responder to arrive on scene. One of the surviving victims was unconscious and having trouble breathing. The rest were walking wounded. Detective Olsen determined that his rescue efforts could best be served by helping the victim who was having difficulty breathing. Detective Olsen opened the victim's airway which allowed him to breathe. Detective Olsen maintained the open airway by holding the victim's tongue until he was relieve by EMTs. Despite Detective Olsen's efforts, and the efforts of advanced medical personnel, the victim ultimately succumbed to his injuries 3 days later at the University of Utah Medical Center where he had been airlifted. Detective Olsen's actions brought comfort and relief to a suffering human being and allowed the victim's family the opportunity to say goodbye to their loved-one before he passed away. Corporal David Noyes will be receiving the Idaho State Police Lifesaving Award. Here is a brief account of the incident: On September 6, 2011 at 8:25 pm, Corporal David Noyes was dispatched to I-15 at the Center Street overpass to check on a subject that was on the bridge close to the south bound lanes. When Corporal Noyes arrived, he found a subject sitting on the bridge railing over Center Street. The subject yelled at Corporal Noyes to stay back and threatened to jump off the bridge. Corporal Noyes acted quickly and requested additional assistance and closed the southbound lanes of I-15 and the adjacent roadways. Corporal Noyes negotiated with the subject, developed a rapport with him, and kept him from jumping. Ultimately Corporal Noyes was able to grab the subject when the subject was distracted, and took him into protective custody. Corporal Noyes displayed calm, courage and intelligence throughout the incident and was able to bring a very tense and dangerous situation to a safe and successful conclusion.