Oswego Police responded to assist Montgomery Police Nov. 28 with a hit and run accident that turned into a deadly explosion. Oswego police officers Cassandra Catberro, Matthew Unger and James Novy were each awarded Medals of Honor for their rescue efforts. (Photo courtesy of Oswego Police)

It’s a video that gives you goosebumps to watch.

Captured on the dash cam of an Oswego Police squad car, the short clip gives a candid glimpse into the lengths officers go to protect those they serve.

The footage was taken on Nov. 28 in the parking lot of the Salvation Army on Douglas Road in Montgomery where 71-year-old Earnest Sercye was sitting trapped inside a burning vehicle.

Sercye’s truck had hit a concrete barrier, careened down a hill full of waist-high grass, and burst into flames.

VIDEO: Police at scene of deadly explosion

As they approached the car, four responding Oswego officers were unaware if Sercye was a suspect in a shooting that had just occurred in their jurisdiction, or if the crash that ended in a grassy embankment behind the Salvation Army was unrelated.

Officer Brandon Dilg arrived on scene and immediately ran toward the vehicle without hesitation, Police Chief Jeffrey Burgner said.

When he realized his fire extinguisher was no match for flames that rose taller than Sercye’s truck, Dilg knew he had to get the man out of the vehicle, and fast.

As the grass around him burned, Dilg and three other Oswego officers on the scene battled the blaze and worked together to reach the man inside the vehicle.

Sercye, however, was refusing to get out of the burning truck.

In the dash cam video, a half dozen Montgomery and Oswego officers are seen racing toward the fiery scene without inhibition. Working together, they successfully get Sercye to safety.

It was later determined that Sercye was not involved in the nearby shooting, but was instead involved in a road-rage hit and run accident. Officers rushing up to save him, however, were under the assumption that he was possibly armed. This fact alone made the already dangerous situation even more grave.

Dilg, along with Oswego Officers Cassandra Catberro, Matthew Unger and James Novy put aside any trepidation that evening to save the life of a stranger, and for that, they have been honored by their department.

Dilg has been awarded the department’s highest honor, the Medal of Valor Award, for exceptional bravery. It’s awarded when an officer goes into a situation knowing the event could cause him injury. In this case, it did. Dilg received second-degree burns as a result of saving Sercye.

Officers Cassandra Catberro, Matthew Unger and James Novy were each awarded Medals of Honor.

“Had their actions not been swift and meaningful that night, that man would have died that night or shortly after,” Burgner said. “I am honored and humbled to work with each of you.”

The dash cam video, which clearly shows the officers’ heroic efforts and the blaze they were up against, went viral and ended up featured on The Today Show. Hundreds of thousands of people got a brief chance to see an amazing feat of bravery. What many of us would run from, these officers bravely and fiercely ran toward.

Burgner said that many people falsely assume an officer’s goal at the end of the day is to make it home safely.

“If their number one goal was to go home safely, they wouldn’t come in and do the work that they do,” Burgner said. “They wouldn’t put their hearts and lives at risk for the communities they serve.”

—– Oswego police honored for rescue during explosion —–