Firefighter Gullage along with members of his family, the City Council, Senator Pat Jehlen and Fire Chief Charles Breen. Mayor Ballantyne was also present to congratulate Firefighter Gullage. — Photo courtesy of Somerville Fire Dept.

Somerville Firefighter John Gullage was presented with a citation at the City Council meeting on June 8, 2023. The citation commended Firefighter Gullage’s life saving actions while off-duty on May 19, 2023. Firefighter Gullage along with off-duty Danvers Firefighter James Gallo witnessed a fellow hockey player collapse on the ice and was unresponsive at the Veterans Skating Rink on Somerville Avenue. They obtained an automatic defibrillator and attached it to the victim and immediately performed chest compressions until the arrival of firefighters and Cataldo Ambulance. The patient was transported to the hospital and survived. Chief Breen, in a commendation issued by the Fire Department, mentioned that this was an example of the fact that firefighters are never truly off-duty.

— Somerville Fire Department