Biden awards Medal of Valor to police officer for water rescue

President Joe Biden awarded the Medal of Valor on Friday to Lincoln Police Sergeant Tu Anh Tran for his heroic actions in saving a 27-year-old woman from a sinking car during a winter storm in February 2023. The Medal of Valor is the nation’s highest honor for public safety officers.

According to Nebraska Examiner, Sgt. Tran responded to an emergency at Wilderness Ridge Golf Course in Lincoln, Nebraska, where the woman’s Hyundai Elantra had skidded on icy Yankee Hill Road and plunged into a pond. With temperatures at 22 degrees, Tran was the first officer on the scene. After removing his bulletproof vest and utility belt, he swam 30 feet into the icy water to reach the sinking vehicle.

As reported by KSNB Local 4, this was not Tran’s first water rescue. In September 2022, he saved another individual in a similar incident. The Lincoln Police Department credited Tran’s actions with inspiring the placement of water rescue throw bags in all marked cruisers, a measure that has enhanced officer preparedness.

Tran has received multiple awards, including the Carnegie Medal for civilian heroism, the Mayor’s Award of Excellence, and the Lincoln Police Department’s Police Medal of Honor. His dedication to public safety earned him an invitation to the 2024 State of the Union address, where he was honored as a guest of Nebraska Senators Pete Ricketts and Deb Fischer.

On Friday, Sgt. Tran was recognized at the White House alongside other public safety officers who demonstrated extraordinary courage, including Nashville officers who stopped a school shooter and a New York firefighter who rescued a mother and child.