Gary L. McCane Jr.

Gary L. McCane, Jr., helped attempt to save Hubert R. Ferguson from suffocation, Louisville, Kentucky, February 25, 2000. Ferguson, 44, and another man were waterproofing a below-ground cistern at a residence when Ferguson lost consciousness inside the chamber. The other man called out for help. Working for another company at a nearby residence, McCane, 23, installer, and his coworkers were alerted to the situation, and they went to the scene. McCane was descending a ladder into the cistern when vapors there ignited explosively, burning him severely and killing the two men inside. McCane required extensive hospitalization for his burns, which were disabling.