The Aloha Exchange Club of East Hawaii recognized Puna Patrol Officer Conrad Bidal on Thursday as the East Hawaii Officer of the Month for February.
The Aloha Exchange Club of East Hawaii recognized Puna Patrol Officer Conrad Bidal on Thursday as the East Hawaii Officer of the Month for February.
Bidal, who has less than a year of service with the Police Department, was honored for what Sergeant William Derr described as his “extreme courage” while evacuating occupants of apartments above Luquin’s restaurant during a midnight fire that destroyed the structure.
Noticing lights on the second floor of the building after the fire was in progress, Bidal went inside and conducted a search for occupants. He found four people and evacuated them. When he went back to make sure no one else was inside, the occupants returned to retrieve personal belongings. As Bidal completed the task of evacuating them a second time, the building became fully engulfed in flames.
The East Hawaii Officer of the Month award is a project of the Aloha Exchange Club of East Hawaii.