During the 65th annual Honors Convocation, held May 13th in Washington, D.C., the Department of the Interior honored a U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service biologist for a successful career dedicated to conservation of the endangered red-cockaded wood pecker and two employees of the National Wildlife Refuge System for the dramatic rescue of an angler from the Mississippi River.
Each year the Department recognizes acts of "courage, valor, selflessness and exceptional management" in men and women who are nominated by their respective bureaus from across the United States.
"Im very proud of our entire Fish and Wildlife Service family, and especially those recognized today," said Service Director H. Dale Hall. "Their outstanding work and courageous actions represent the best of the Service."
Ralph Costa received the Distinguished Service Award--the highest honorary recognition granted for exceptional contribution to the public service--for his sustained career excellence and outstanding leadership involving red-cockaded woodpecker conservation in the Southeastern United States.
Costa served as the Service’s red-cockaded woodpecker recovery coordinator from 1991 until his retirement in 2007. His considerable vision, innovation and leadership significantly and positively influenced the conservation and management of the endangered woodpecker. Costa shaped the Service’s woodpecker management by fostering coordination and collaboration among other Federal, State, and private partners in Florida, Mississippi, Alabama and Georgia. Costa also successfully promoted the use of Safe Harbor Agreements as an effective recovery tool throughout the woodpeckers’ range, enabling private landowners to unite with the government to ensure the survival of the imperiled species. The encouraging progress toward range-wide recovery of this species is testimony to Costa’s accomplishments as a conservationist and team-builder.
Russell A. Engelke and Darryn J. Witt each received the Valor Award – presented to employees who have demonstrated unusual courage involving a high degree of personal risk in the face of danger – for braving the dark of night and icy currents of the Mississippi River to save the life of a fisherman who had been clinging to life on his capsized hovercraft off the Illinois shore.
Last December, Engelke and Witt launched their airboat in the dark after several other rescue attempts by others failed. The two Upper Mississippi River National Wildlife and Fish Refuge employees attempted to rescue two anglers who had been in the icy water all day. Engelke, a Supervisory Wildlife Refuge Specialist and Witt, a Park Ranger, reached one of the victims clinging to the top of an overturned hovercraft. The two men attached a line from their airboat to the overturned craft and secured the victim, who was unable to move. A rescue swimmer secured another line to shore, and as Engelke and Witt held onto the victim and hovercraft, they were pulled to shore. The victim was airlifted to the hospital and survived. Engelke and Witt then re-launched their airboat to the icy river to search for the other man until deteriorating conditions prevented them from their attempt to recover the second victim.
