Waste Connections Driver Waldo Fidele Presented With 3rd Eye Shield Award
At a recent 3rd Eye Virtual Users Group Conference, 3rd Eye was proud to award two Hero Shield Awards for activities that saved lives. The first award was presented to Waste Connections Florida employee Waldo Fidele – who saved the life of a small child that was playing inside a garbage can when it was dumped into the hopper of an automated side loader. Fidele was watching the dump through his 3rd Eye hopper camera when he noticed the boy in the hopper, and immediately hit his E-Stop button to shut the truck off, as per his training. His quick actions saved that child’s life.
Shawn Plunkett, operations manager for Waste Connection said: “The actions saved Elias Quezada from being fatally crushed – he’s truly a hero.” Plunkett continued, “If he hadn’t been paying close attention to the job, we would all be searching for a missing 7-year-old today,” Plunkett said the boy would have been killed without anyone knowing about it, but Fidele’s sharp eye saved the day.
Kurt Salac, the director of Waste Connections, called the rescue miraculous and stated, “Waste management workers are often the unsung heroes of a community,” Salac told the Times. “But we believe this action deserves some praise from everyone.”
In addition to the 3rd Eye award, Waste Connections honored Waldo with a $500 check for his actions.
To learn more about the 3rd Eye Shield award, or to submit a hero for consideration, visit our Shield Award page.
