Catholic Health EMTs Honored After Helping Save Family From Fire
MELVILLE, NY — A routine patient transport became a lifesaving emergency response on May 21 after two Catholic Health EMTs discovered a Ronkonkoma home on fire and helped get the family inside to safety.Catholic Health honored EMTs Ryan Pappas and Semih Yaylacicegi on Wednesday at its EMS Dispatch and Operations Center in Melville, presenting them with the EMS Medical Director’s Award for Clinical Excellence after officials said they helped save five family members from a house fire while transporting a recently discharged patient home from St. Charles Hospital in Port Jefferson. The ceremony also marked the continued growth of Catholic Health’s in-house Emergency Medical Services system, which launched in 2025 to strengthen care coordination and patient transport across Long Island and Queens.Find out what's happening in Huntingtonfor free with the latest updates from Patch.Catholic Health leaders, EMS staff and attendees gather outside the Catholic Health EMS Dispatch and Operations Center in Melville during a ceremony recognizing EMTs Ryan Pappas and Semih Yaylacicegi and commemorating the growth of Catholic Health EMS. (Kepherd Daniel/Patch) Kevin Ferrarotti, Catholic Health’s vice president of Emergency Medical Services, said the incident showed why EMS providers are such a critical part of the health care system — and why their role often extends far beyond routine transport. The crew, Ferrarotti said, had been bringing a patient home after what was supposed to be a routine hospital discharge. The patient was being returned to the care of home caregivers when Pappas and Yaylacicegi arrived at the Ronkonkoma residence and noticed something was wrong.Find out what's happening in Huntingtonfor free with the latest updates from Patch.“Ryan got out with Semi in the back, caring for the patient, and noticed that the patient’s home had smoke and fire coming from the attic with the family still inside,” Ferrarotti said. Pappas, 23, of Levittown, said he was preparing to bring the patient upstairs when he saw the fire.“It was a normal discharge,” Pappas told Patch. “I do five, six a day, do them all day, every day. I was going inside to bring the patient upstairs, so I was going upstairs to see where the patient was going, and I saw in the attic that there was fire and smoke coming out.” Pappas said he immediately knew the situation was too dangerous to ignore.“I knew as soon as I saw it that it was beyond anything that I could handle, that I needed immediately to evacuate the house, get everyone out of the house, call 911, get the fire department there, make sure that everyone was out safe, and just wait for the fire department,” he said. Ferrarotti said Pappas moved quickly while Yaylacicegi continued caring for the patient. “What was so great to see, though, was what happened next, and to see what Ryan did when he got out of the ambulance,” Ferrarotti said. “He noticed right away, and without even flinching, ran inside, made sure the family was out, they were safe while his partner was caring and making sure the patient stayed safe.” Once the family was out of the home, Ferrarotti said the crew helped secure the scene, ensured firefighters could access the residence, and then returned the patient to St. Charles Hospital. “Once everyone was out of the house, you saw Ryan go into action, getting the fire department there, securing the scene, making sure that the ambulance was out of the way for the fire department to come in, and then after the scene was secured, safely brought the patient back to St. Charles, where they were put into the great hands of the clinicians and the team at St. Charles,” Ferrarotti said.Pappas said about five or six people were inside the home. While the moment was shocking, he said, his training helped him focus on what had to happen next. “Honestly, I was shocked,” Pappas said. “This has never happened. This is not a thing that we normally deal with, but I knew everyone needed to get out. I knew that time was a matter of the essence. You know, had to get everybody out of the house in time safely, and I’m glad I did.” Pappas has worked in EMS for about a year and a half and said his training prepared him to remain calm and think through the immediate risks. “I’m thankful to my education, I’m thankful to my company, I’m thankful to the patient’s family for recognizing me,” Pappas said. “I don’t do it for the recognition, but I’m glad I was there.” The patient, Jay Shah, 92, is the father of Amit Shah, who said he was not home when the fire broke out. He later learned that a technician had been working in the attic and that his father was in the driveway being brought into the home when the EMTs discovered the fire.“I was on the road driving back home, got a call from my wife, who was on the line with my sister, about a fire at Dad’s house,” Shah told Patch. “I couldn’t believe it.” Shah said the EMTs’ quick actions made all the difference for his father and family. “They literally saved his life, because there’s no other way to put it,” Shah said. “Not many times the EMT team has to step in for catastrophic situations, such as fire, right, and they immediately took action to call 911, make sure all the people were out of the house, and took my dad back in the hospital.” Shah said his family is recovering and working to return to normal after the fire. “We’re trying to get back to normal as best as we possibly can,” he said.Shah helped Catholic Health leaders present Pappas with the EMS Medical Director’s Award for Clinical Excellence. He said he was grateful to thank Pappas in person. “It was such an incredible action at the time that I just could not have imagined what would happen if it wasn’t for the heroic action of Ryan,” Shah said. Ferrarotti said EMS training teaches providers to stay composed when situations shift suddenly. “You’re trained to have a level head, to look at a situation and understand what to do in moments notice, and make quick, safe judgment actions whenever the time is required,” he said. Catholic Health Interim President and CEO Gary Havican said the integration of EMS into Catholic Health’s system strengthens the organization’s ability to care for patients throughout their full health care journey, from emergency response to hospital care to discharge and transport home.“What that really does is it finishes the continuum of care that Catholic Health provides,” Havican said. “You know, we’re there when you’re at your greatest need for care. We’re also going to transfer you out of the hospitals when you’re done.” Havican said the new EMS system gives Catholic Health an important asset for serving patients and communities. “We understand how important it is for our health system to do the right thing for the patients in the community, and that’s by having an EMS asset,” he said. After the award presentation, Catholic Health officials, EMS staff and attendees moved outside for a ribbon-cutting ceremony in front of the EMS Dispatch and Operations Center. For Ferrarotti, the recognition was about both the EMTs’ actions and the larger mission of EMS.“It went without a hitch,” Ferrarotti said of the response. “This is something that we don’t ever see in all the years of being in EMS.” Asked whether he considers himself a hero, Pappas said, “Not really, no. It’s just the right place, right time. I did the job.”Get more local news delivered straight to your inbox. Sign up for free Patch newsletters and alerts.
