Cal Fire Battalion Chief John Messina was awarded the Governor's Medal of Valor Award at a ceremony that took place Tuesday in Sacramento.

Messina was off duty in December of 2014 when he learned that there were people trapped in a vehicle that was submerged in water near the main channel of Honcut Creek. He was nearby and went to the scene and spotted three adults and a child on top of the roof of the submerged vehicle. The car then began to be swept downstream. Messina jumped into the swift moving water reportedly without a life vest or regard for his own safety to rescue trapped people.