FPST graduate receives national award
Monday, May 18, 2015
Michael Cates, 1990 OSU fire protection and safety technology alumnus, was recently
awarded the 2015 Walter W. Maybee Award for heroic and quick-thinking action taken
during a 1998 incident at the Idaho National Laboratory (INL).
On July 28, 1998, Cates accompanied a team of 12 other Test Reactor Area (TRA) employees
to a facility called Building 648 to disengage a CO2 circuit in hopes of improving
the fire alarm system throughout the building. When the circuit was turned off, equipment
malfunctioned and released agent into the air, endangering all 13 people in the building.
Cates recognized the situation and immediately began to evacuate his co-workers,
some of whom were unconscious. He continually reentered the building to assist as
many people as possible. Despite his efforts one fatality was recorded, but all others
survived.
For his direct and indirect actions to protect life and property within the realm
of the Department of Energy (DOE), Cates was awarded the 2015 Walter W. Maybee Award.
Cates began his career as a Federal Contractor for the Idaho Operations Office (ID)
in 1993 and then continued it as a fire protection engineer for various DOE-ID facilities.
He is currently a fire protection engineer for the Research and Education Complex
in Idaho Falls, ID.