PERU — Bruce Edgington is alive today because two Peru men stopped and decided to get involved, according to Miami County Sheriff Deputy Jeff Williams.

Williams commended Nolan Sturch and Michael Brooks for their actions during the Feb. 26, 2009, accident just before Gov. Mitch Daniels presented the two men with the Governor’s Heroism Award on Thursday.

Sturch, 27, and Brooks, 47, were headed to work, driving in opposite directions, when they came upon Edgington’s Dodge Intrepid against a utility pole on Frances Slocum Trail.

Sturch and Brooks were able to pull Edgington from the vehicle before it burst into flames.

Before a large gathering at the Peru Fire Department, Daniels said the people there were showing their appreciation for what Sturch and Brooks did that day in Peru.

Daniels said he decided to implement the award three years ago to honor those ordinary citizens, outside of the emergency personnel who put their lives on the line daily, who do something that lives up to the word “hero.”

“They achieve something remarkable,” he said. “It has been given out just a handful of times. I want it to remain special, reserved for those private citizens that have done something extraordinary.”

Daniels said the one thing he has discovered is the people receiving the award are modest.

“They have displayed courage, a willingness to put themselves at great risk and refuse to be impressed with themselves afterwards,” he said. As he handed the two men their awards, he added, “This is a small token of the esteem all of Indiana have for you; you’re now in elite company.”

Recalling that morning almost a year ago, Sturch said the two friends noticed Edgington trapped in the vehicle and did everything they could.

Sturch said the driver-side door was pinned shut and he was able to force the passenger-side door open.

“We noticed some smoke, we thought it was dust from the airbag,” he said, “after a while we noticed flames coming from under his seat. We knew we had to get him out.”

Brooks said when he first saw the accident he thought the driver was dead because of the impact with the utility pole.

“We got up to the car and he opened his eyes and kind of looked right through me, so I knew he had a head injury,” Brooks said. “His arm was caught between the pole and the steering wheel. We were waiting for 911 to arrive. The car started smoking and things got frantic after that.”

Brooks said when Williams arrived they were trying to get air to Edgington because the car was on fire.

“I jumped in and yanked on his arm,” Brooks said. “Sometime in the process, I saw him take the seatbelt off — he didn’t, but I saw it. I pulled him through the harness, taking him out of the car and his leg was on fire.”

The two men removed Edgington from the burning car and rolled him on the ground to put the fire out on his leg.

“I was still shaking, walked away and looked back and [the car] was engulfed,” Sturch said.

Both men said they didn’t think about being close to the burning car.

“I thought he may die in five minutes, but he isn’t burning to death,” Brooks said. “There was a point where I thought we would have to leave him in the car. Suddenly he came loose. It just sort of happened.”

Neither man considers himself to be a hero.

“The guy needed help and I was in a position to help,” Brooks said. “At the time, I felt this is what I was born for. I was able to help someone who needed it. I think other people would do it, it just comes natural.”

Williams said there were other people that drove by the accident without stopping.

“I wasn’t surprised,” he said of the two men’s actions. “I’ve known Mike for a long time, he has a tough exterior, but would give the shirt off his back.

“They are deserving,” Williams said of the award. “They could have kept on driving.”

• Ken de la Bastide is the Kokomo Tribune enterprise editor. He can be reached at 765-454-8580 or via e-mail at ken.delabastide@kokomotribune.com