The fire fighters who worked to extinguish the fire in the Fuel Storage Base in Matanzas, including those who died in the line of duty, will be honored for their heroism.

The heroic epic that meant the extinguishing of the fire of great proportions at the Matanzas Fuel Storage Base, which took place between August 5 and 12, was made possible with the bravery and dedication of hundreds of men and women, officers and civilians, several of whom were decorated on Wednesday with orders and medals approved by Presidential Decrees, and in the presence of the First Secretary of the Party and President of the Republic, Miguel Díaz-Canel Bermúdez.

This was the first of several ceremonies in different parts of the country to recognize the nobility of those who fought the disaster. Posthumous awards will also be presented to those who died in that mission.

In the Protocol Hall of El Laguito, in the presence of members of the Political Bureau, leaders of the Revolutionary Armed Forces (MINFAR) and the Ministry of the Interior (MININT), the Association of Combatants of the Cuban Revolution and representatives of political and grass-roots organizations, the Head of State, at the proposal of MINFAR, awarded the Antonio Maceo Order to a group of officers and civilian workers for the extraordinary successes achieved during the extinguishing of the fire. At the proposal of the MININT, six officers and one civilian worker were awarded the Order of June 6, Second Degree.

Likewise, at the proposal of the MINFAR, the Order for the Service to the Homeland of the third degree in the Revolutionary Armed Forces was awarded to 18 officers who were part of the helicopter crews that took part in the extinguishing of the fire.

During the tribute, the MINFAR and the MININT also presented the medals Ignacio Agramonte second and third class; and Calixto García; For the Security of the Internal Order first and second class, and For Bravery during the service first and second class, to a group of officers, civilian workers, volunteers, sergeants and combatants, for the outstanding fulfillment of their respective tasks, which contributed to extinguish the fire.

“This medal is not only a recognition to myself, but to all the comrades who were there in the fire, to those who lost their lives, to the people of Matanzas who trusted us all the time, showing their support and knowing that we were going to successfully extinguish that fire,” said Lieutenant Colonel Liset Braun Castellanos, head of the Political Section of the Matanzas Military Region, who received the Calixto García Medal.

Source: Granma