By Becky Maxedon

Almost a year ago on Nov. 27, 2022, returning to Lake Havasu City from a medical transfer to a Las Vegas, Nev., hospital, River Medical Response paramedic and field training officer Bill Weber and his partner noticed a glow and plume of smoke coming from an area in Desert Hills.

The pair listened to discern if the Desert Hills Fire Department had been dispatched to the location.

“We turned right on to Chenoweth Drive in Desert Hills and headed toward what we saw in order to call it in,” Weber told RiverScene Magazine. They were heading toward the fire they had heard being dispatched on the radio.

“We were driving around the corner and saw another fire. A big motor home and a van were fully engulfed, and they were right against a mobile home and other things,” he said. The fire Weber and his partner discovered was called in at that point.

Photo courtesy Bill Weber

Weber said as they assessed the scene there were several people in the street and the onlookers informed the pair that there were people in the mobile home.

Weber approached the home and could see at least four people inside.

“Two were able to exit the home, but the other two were elderly and not mobile – it looked like they used walkers,” he said.

“It was a spur-of-the-moment decision. I went in and put the female in a fireman’s carry and got her across the street and out of harms way. The male was a little more difficult to get out. My partner helped me get him across the street.”

Weber said they were both treated and released.

“I was glad that we were in the right place at the right time for us and them. I’m so grateful that they were not injured,” he said.

He said Desert Hills firefighters arrived quickly to put out the fire. “There were two fires, two blocks apart. I wasn’t sure what was going on,” he said. “Anything could have happened at that point.”

Because of Weber’s bravery, Oct. 24 was proclaimed William Weber Day during a Lake Havasu City City Council meeting.

AMR supervisor Jeff Skinner speaks at the city council meeting Tuesday evening about Weber’s award. Jillian Danielson/RiverScene

Weber will travel to Washington, D.C., Nov. 4-8, to receive the Stars of Life Award presented by the American Ambulance Association.

Weber, before his current position with River Medical, was a member of the Desert Hills Fire Department from 1995-2015.

“In 2015, after 20 years with the fire department, I switched over to River Medical and I’ve been there for 17 years.”

Weber is a 1994 graduate of Lake Havasu High School.

Mayor Cal Sheehy, Bill Weber and his parents Rick and Lynda Amond pose for a photo at Tuesday night’s city council meeting. Jillian Danielson/RiverScene

Mayor Cal Sheehy, EMT Bill Weber, and Weber’s supervisor Jeff Skinner pose for a photo at the city council meeting Tuesday evening. Jillian Danielson/RiverScene

Weber’s mom, Lynda Amond takes video of the proclamation Tuesday evening at the city council meeting. Jillian Danielson/RiverScene