Contra Costa County Supervisor Diane Burgis presented the Carnegie Medal to Troy White at an Oct. 7 ceremony held at the county administration building in Martinez, California.
White was awarded the medal for saving a 3-year-old girl who was trapped inside a burning car on May 21, 2024, in Antioch, California.
The car had overturned onto its passenger side and came to rest on the shoulder of a highway. White, 40, of Brentwood, California, was driving nearby and came upon the scene. He pulled over and ran to the vehicle just as the girl’s mother climbed through the driver’s window. She ran toward him and called out for help as he approached.
“There was a lot of dust and debris in the air,” White said. “When she told me there was someone in the car, I knew I had to stop.”
Flames coming from the undercarriage near the engine grew and spread while White ran around the vehicle to the roof and jumped up and braced himself on a doorframe and leaned inside, upside-down, through a broken window opening. The girl was dangling in her car seat on the opposite side of the vehicle with her foot against the pavement through the broken passenger-side window. White reached down and unhooked the car seat belt, grabbed the girl, then lifted her out of the vehicle. He carried her to safety and handed her to her mother. Firefighters arrived several minutes later to find the vehicle engulfed in flames. An explosion occurred shortly after their arrival. The girl and her mother were taken by ambulance to the hospital where they were treated for minor cuts to their faces. White was not injured.
“Today we get to honor Troy White of Brentwood,” said Burgis. “He’s a man that shares the same spirit. The spirit of every day citizens who step forward in moments of danger, proving that heroes don’t always wear uniforms or have titles. They are everyday women and men who are living examples of heart, courage, and compassion.”
“It’s an honor,” White said upon receiving the medal. “I’m a believer and I would like to thank God for the opportunity to have been there that day. I really hope through the remainder of my life to really earn this medal. If the opportunity ever arises again, I would do the same thing every day.”
