By Alex Lane - The Department of Transportation Pine Grove Maintenance Crew was recently recognized at the CALTRANS District 10 office in Stockton. CALTRANS Director Will Kempton presented the Governor’s Employee Safety Award, or GESA, to Mike Blake, Kyle Gaspard, John Kearns, Leonard Marsh, Dave McDaniel, Scott McKinney and Bruce Sage on behalf of Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger. The prestigious GESA award was established in 1980 to highlight and encourage safety on the job by recognizing individuals and groups who have provided outstanding safety and health service to the State. Awards are presented to individuals or groups who have responded to hazardous or life threatening events, as well as those who have developed safety programs that are not part of their normal duties. Each Sate Agency only has the opportunity to provide two nominations per year. The Pine Grove crew was chosen for their brave and immediate response in preventing what could have been a catastrophic wildfire in the Pine Grove area. On August 9th, 2007, the crew was working on Highway 88 near Buckhorn Ridge Road when a bus transporting inmates and towing a portable restroom trailer passed the operation. A wheel from the trailer came off, igniting a grass fire near the road. The crew quickly coordinated efforts to contain the fire using several breaks until CAL FIRE could arrive. The crew also set up traffic control and cleared out civilians.