(Des Moines, Iowa) – Four men with the Shelby County Sheriff’s Office were honored this (Monday) morning at the State Capital in Des Moines, with the Sullivan Brothers Award of Valor. Sheriff Neil Gross, Chief Deputy Cody Eckles, Sgt. Jake Hoss, Deputy Bill McDaniel were presented with the award by Governor Kim Reynolds, Kelly Sullivan, representing the Sullivan family, Col. Nathan Fulk with the Iowa State Patrol, and Iowa DPS Commissioner Stephan K. Bayens.

Commissioner Bayens explained the origin of the award lies with five brothers from Waterloo who enlisted in the U-S Navy during World War II.

The award itself was established in 1967 and later renamed The Sullivan Brothers Award of Valor, to recognize the heroic efforts of First Responders, Peace officer and Firefighters. Commissioner Bayens said the award recipients are selected by a committee within the First Responder community. He said the award is for those who go above and beyond the normal expectations for their position in public service.

The four men from the Shelby County Sheriff’s Office, Bayens said the incident they were involved in began to unfold on July 12th, 2021, when the Sheriff’s Office responded to a call about a suicidal subject barricaded inside of a home in Elk Horn (IA).

Once contact was made with the barricaded subject, for more than two-hours, negotiators spoke with him and tried to reach a peaceful resolution and surrender, but gunfire erupted from inside the home. After another round of negotiations, it appeared the subject might peacefully surrender, but then black smoke was seen coming from a window of the residence, flames began to engulf the structure and authorities lost contact with the subject inside. Ammunition was heard going-off in the home as the result of the intense heat.

Putting their own safety aside, the four men breached the house in an attempt to rescue the barricaded subject.

Once the fire was extinguished, law enforcement learned all the exterior doors had been screwed shut from inside, and a fully loaded rifle was near the suspect when law enforcement made entry.

A Lifesaving award was presented to Caleb Crocker, who was working at a group home in Guttenberg for Iowans with disabilities when it caught fire last December.

Commissioner Stephne Bayens says Crocker was treated for smoke inhalation after he rescued residents.

Another Lifesaving Award was presented to Andrew Kreig, of Cylinder, a farm hand in rural Palo Alto County, who rescued an elderly person from a burning home on November 28th of last year. Someone who noticed smoke coming from the home called Kreig and asked him to drive over and check. Bayens says when Kreig arrived, the home was on fire, the door was locked and he could see someone was inside.

Governor Reynolds opened the ceremony this (Monday) morning in the Capitol Rotunda.