Sanitation Awards, Upgrades
Strongest Honored for 'Saves'

By REUVEN BLAU

Mayor Bloomberg last week honored five Sanitation Workers for two separate instances of saving people trapped in crashed cars and for helping a mother and her infant escape an assailant.

The Chief-Leader/Michael O'Kane CAR RESCUE: Sanitation Workers Michael Abatatuno, left, and Anthony DiMasso received the Gold Medal of Honor for pulling a mother and her child out of their smashed car on the Van Wyck Expressway.

"I salute today's medals recipients and the example they set," Mr. Bloomberg said in a statement released after the ceremony held at Colden Auditorium at Queens College.

The Mayor and Sanitation Commissioner John J. Doherty also administered the oath of office to 533 new Sanitation Workers and promoted 370 employees in various ranks.

'Should Be Recognized'

"The men and women of the department carry on a tradition of vital city service that sometimes does not garner the recognition it should," Mr. Doherty said. "On a day meant to honor New York's Strongest, I am proud of all our Sanitation Workers, supervisors of all levels, and civilian personnel who have made this great department successful."

The Sanitation Workers who formed the DSNY's Delaware County Flood Relief Unit were awarded with a unit citation. Last summer, 65 volunteers from the department went to Delaware County to help the area that was flooded with 15 inches of rain. The group, which was led by Deputy Chief Nicholas Vero, helped remove debris and fix and clean streets.

The Gold Medal of Honor was awarded to Sanitation Workers Michael Abatatuno and Anthony DiMasso, who saw a car flip over several times on the Van Wyck Expressway. They ran to the vehicle and helped pry open its sunroof to remove a woman and her trapped child.

Rescued 4 From Car

In a similar incident, Sanitation Workers Kyle Bluth and Michael Casagrande received the Silver Medal of Honor for pulling to safety a driver and three passengers from a smoldering car on June 12, 2006.

Sanitation Supervisor Frank Perrone of the Lot Cleaning Division received the Bronze Medal of Honor. He had just completed inspecting a lot in The Bronx on March 6, 2007 when he saw a man strike a woman, who was wearing pajamas and pushing a cart, which he later discovered was holding her baby. The assailant grabbed the infant and hailed a cab, but Mr. Perrone used his car to block him in.