When On March 11, 2015, a civilian T-59 Hawk jet slammed into Marine Lance Cpl. Anthony DuBeau's a truck as it crashed during a botched takeoff at an Arizona military base, Cpl. John Ferguson sprang into action. Marine Corps Air Station Yuma, Arizona. Both the truck and plane burst into flames.
When the truck and plane burst into flames at Marine Corps Air Station Yuma on March 11, 2015, Cpl. John Ferguson sprinted toward DuBeau's vehicle to pull his comrade from the vehicle and carry him was recently awarded the Navy Marine Corps Medal for pulling a Marine out of the burning truck and carrying him away from the wreckage.
Despite Ferguson's efforts, The Marine, Lance Cpl. Anthony DuBeau, 23, died from of his injuries. Ferguson, a combat engineer with Marine Wing Support Squadron 371, was recently awarded the Navy and Marine Corps Medal for his response. The medal is the service's highest non-combat decoration for heroism.
Ferguson was about 50 yards away from the truck when it was hit by the plane and caught fire. He was pouring concrete with as part of a construction crew about 50 yards from DuBeau's truck when it was hit by the plane and caught on fire..
Lance Cpl. Anthony T. DuBeau
Photo Credit: Marine Corps via AP
"When the aircraft crashed, everyone's immediate reaction was just to get down, naturally," Ferguson told Marine Corps Times. "I noticed that a truck was still rolling backwards and on fire."
Ferguson was already running toward the truck when his staff noncommissioned officer yelled out for someone to check to see if anyone was inside the burning vehicle.
As soon as he got to the truck, Ferguson said he peered inside and saw DuBeau in the driver’s seat, he said. It was immediately apparent that DuBeau was suffering from a serious head wound.
The situation was potentially catastrophic. The truck was being engulfed by flames and an MK-76 training bomb had been sheared off the plane and lodged in the vehicle, according to Ferguson's award citation. As the fire spread, the chances grew that the bomb's pyrotechnic signal charge could ignite.
But at the time, Ferguson said he was so focused on getting DuBeau to safety that he didn’t have time to worry about the truck exploding, he said.
"In hindsight, that should have been a concern I had," Ferguson said.
A crashed vehicle sits alongside a runway where a T-59 Hawk aircraft crashed at Marine Corps Air Station in Yuma, Ariz., in March 2015. Lance Cpl. Anthony DuBeau, who was in the truck at the time, was killed in the accident.
Photo Credit: Randy Hoeft/The Yuma Sun via AP
The flames were shooting up between 3 and 5 three and five feet, Ferguson said. While he felt the fire and the heat, he was still able to lean inside the truck to try to free DuBeau.
"The only difficulty was getting him out of the truck because … the truck was a little beat up so the door was kind of hard to get open," Ferguson said. "I just put more force into it and was able to get it open."
After struggling to free DuBeau from his seatbelt, Ferguson said he pulled him out, being careful not aggravate the lance corporal's DuBeau’s head injury, Ferguson said.
He Ferguson carried DuBeau about 10 meters from the truck and laid him on the ground to give him first aid, but the fire kept raging. and wWith the danger that the pyrotechnic signal charge could ignite, Ferguson was ordered to move further away from the vehicle, his citation says.
"He then single-handedly picked up the Marine and carried him another 30 meters to safety," the citation says. "By his courageous and prompt actions in the face of great personal risk, Corporal Ferguson reflected great credit upon himself and upheld the highest traditions of the Marine Corps and the United States Naval Service."
Ferguson, who received his award on Monday from Lt. Col. Leonel Brito, his squadron's commanding officer, said he appreciates being recognized for his actions, but he was trying to save a fellow Marine that day — not earn a medal.
"I wish I could have done more and I wish that Marine could have still been with us today," he said.
