Mary Lee Roberts Citizen of the Year

SeguinFire Department

Story by Felicia FrazarPhotos by Felicia Frazar & the City of Seguin

The heroics of Seguin Fire Lt. Harrison Broadhurst, Fire Apparatus Operator Shannon Billings, and Firefighters Bryan Zuberbueler, Brett Starr and Cody Boehm when they pulled Seguin Police Sgt. Bradlee Flippin to safety after he was shot in the line of duty earned them the Mary Lee Roberts Citizen of the Year Award.

The five-man crew manning Seguin Fire Department’s Station 3 on Sunday, Oct. 10 are credited with going above and beyond the call of duty when they drove into a “hot zone,” scooped up an injured Seguin police officer out of the street and got him to safety.

It’s their heroics that morning that earned Seguin Fire Lt. Harrison Broadhurst, Fire Apparatus Operator Shannon Billings, and Firefighters Bryan Zuberbueler, Brett Starr and Cody Boehm this year’s Mary Lee Roberts Citizen of the Year Award from the Seguin Gazette.

The crew was called to the 600 block of Rosemary Street, along with the Seguin Police Department, for a shooting. A woman and a child were reportedly shot by a male subject in a domestic dispute.

Seguin Police Sgt. Bradlee Flippin immediately began to investigate as he arrived at the home and was subsequently shot twice by the suspect.

The shooting happened as Officer Brittany Cimental noticed a man in the shadows and, when Flippin and three other officers approached him, the man fired his shotgun striking the sergeant several times in the body armor, hands, arms, neck and head, Seguin Police Chief Terry Nichols said.

The first shotgun blasts damaged Flippin’s handgun as he and other officers returned fire, Nichols said, adding that while Flippin looked down at the weapon to try to get it to work again, the gunman’s second shot hit the sergeant in the top of the head.

Had Flippin not been looking down, the shots could have hit his face and caused more devastating injuries, Nichols said.

The sergeant was able to make it to the street where he radioed for help, Nichols said.

The five firefighters, who were waiting nearby for the all clear, heard Flippin’s call for help come across the radio and didn’t hesitate to act, Nichols said.

“When they heard Brad come on and say he had been shot and where he was, they didn’t wait to be told to go down there,” he said. “They knew the scene was not secure and they rolled down there anyway. They stopped right in the middle of what we call a ‘hot zone’ not knowing where the gunman was and jumped out of the truck, grabbed Brad and literally ran him back to the ambulance, got him in there and got out of the area.”

As per fire department protocol, firefighters called to an active situation are waiting nearby, but a safe distance away. In this instance, under the guidance of Broadhurst, the team of five moved in, Nichols said.

“It goes against their traditional training and protocols, but they knew that somebody needed help and they went and helped,” he said. “They heard it

on the radio, they heard how bad it was. They could probably hear the gunfire from where they were. When Brad is on the radio saying ‘I’ve been shot in the head. I’ve been shot in the arms and I’m out here in the middle of the street,’ you could see the headlights coming. They didn’t hesitate a second. They were in a situation of get him and get out.”

As soon as they got to the officer, they got him out of the street with Cimental right on their heals, Nichols said.

“She got there the same time as the professional medics,” he said. “She immediately let them do what they do and she reverted back to what she does, which is her law enforcement role. I think we missed that piece at times because Brad suffered two gunshot wounds, he’s in a lot of pain, he’s in the middle of the street and we still don’t know where the bad guy is.”

The woman and child were retrieved from the home and taken to Guadalupe Regional Medical Center for treatment.

Police eventually found and arrested the man suspected of shooting Flippin, the woman and child.

Seguin Fire Chief Dale Skinner, who later watched the body cam video of the shooting, said the video was hard to watch and hear the actions that led up to the shooting. But he was also proud of how his crew reacted in the heat of the moment.

“Once Brad made it out to the street and then you see our guys come in, and the actions they took, it went from Oh. My. God! to Oh My God,” he said. “As a fire chief, one of the greatest benefits of my job is getting to watch our firefighters actually perform the job they were trained to do.”

Broadhurst joined the Seguin Fire Department in 2011 as a firefighter and rose through the ranks to his most recent promotion to lieutenant.

“On that night, Harrison in particular, acted like a seasoned company officer,” Skinner said. “That to me was one of the prouder moments for me, to see that.”

During his tenure with the department, Broadhurst has shown he isn’t shy about taking on something new, Skinner said.

“When there is any special assignments, he is always one of the first people to volunteer for it, no matter what the job is,” he said. “He is dedicated to the fire service.”

Billing, who was driving the engine that night, is a life-long Seguin resident, who joined the department in 2006.

Skinner said he is not only dedicated to the fire service, but to the community.

“Most of our public education events, Shannon is in the middle of,” Skinner said. “He served as our public education officer, he has represented the department with the Badges, Bikes and Tykes. Of course there is the work he does with Bras for a Cause. He is truly a servant of the community of Seguin.”

Billings has served as firefighter, fire investigator and currently is a fire apparatus operator.

In 2013, the Seguin Fire Department hired Zuberbueler straight out of the academy, Skinner said. A few years later, he enlisted with the military and was deployed overseas.

“He was exposed to and witnessed a lot of things,” Skinner said. “I think what that did was gave him a lot more self confidence in his skills as a paramedic. His training in the military was very evident in his response that night. What I saw was a very focused and determined individual when I saw the body cam footage.”

Starr, who joined the department in 2020, jumped out of the of ambulance to assist Broadhurst and Zuberbueler.

“I didn’t really get to see a lot of him in the video, but Bret was right in the middle of it all,” Skinner said. “He

jumped out of the ambulance, and assisted Bryan and Harrison with getting Brad to the ambulance. He worked with them as a team to treat Brad and ensure that he was taken care of.”

Boehm, who was hired in 2018, drove the ambulance into the scene and out just as quickly as the crew loaded up the wounded officer, Skinner said.

“He is a great paramedic,” he said. “On this day, he was the one driving the ambulance. I think it is great that he willingly drove into the hot zone and drove them out safely. He is one of those guys that comes up with ideas as to how to improve our service delivery to our citizens.”

Each firefighter played a role in helping to protect and save Flippin that night, Skinner said.

“Once I discovered the actions our responders took, it filled my heart with pride to hear what they did,” he said. “The Bible verse, Psalms 23, ‘There is no greater love than to lay one’s life down for your friends,’ and that is what they did. These guys did what we are charged with doing, that is to risk your life for others.”

It’s their actions on this morning and every day that have earned them the Mary Lee Roberts Citizen of the Year Award.