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How Island Lake cops' heroic actions saved lives

Island Lake Police Officer Gilbert Hueramo is a one-man ambulance, always prepared for the worst. On all calls, he carries two tourniquets, three battle dressings, tampons to plug holes, a “chest seal” — bandage for entrance and exit wounds — and shears to cut clothing.

The worst happened early Oct. 16 when a man opened fire through the door of his Holiday Hills home, wounding two McHenry County Sheriff's deputies answering a domestic dispute call.

Hueramo, a 20-year law enforcement veteran with tactical training, and Victoria Gwizdak, a patrol officer with five years on the force, helped save the lives of the deputies by dragging them to safety while providing medical help.

“I just reverted right back to my training,” said Hueramo, 48, of Mount Prospect, a member of the Illinois Tactical Officers Association and a rapid deployment instructor. “The most important thing is, whether it's a police officer or a civilian who is wounded, you've gotta stop the bleeding and get them out to a trauma center.”

The rescue took about 15 to 20 minutes, under heightened fear of a shooter on the loose.

“It felt like it was an eternity,” said Gwizdak, a single mom from Lake in the Hills. “All I kept thinking was to save them. I wasn't scared that I was going to get shot at.”

The deputies went down after being hit by numerous rounds of a .223-caliber AR15 rifle, police said. Khalia Satkiewicz, a 12-year veteran of the force, was shot in the right leg, while Dwight Maness, a seven-year veteran, was shot in the abdomen and left leg.

Another deputy, Eric Luna, who had arrived moments behind Satkiewicz and Maness, provided cover to keep the shooter at bay.

Hueramo and Gwizdak got to the scene within three minutes.

“We all have our weapons out because we don't know what's going on,” Hueramo said.

Hueramo said he has trained police departments in active shooter scenarios. He's been shot at and was involved in shootings while working on Chicago's South Side. But, he said the Holiday Hills shooting “is by far the worst.”

It was the first for Gwizdak, though she trained twice in active shooter scenarios.

She initially was concerned about a shortage of weaponry.

“There was a split second (when) I started thinking the guy had a rifle and I had a handgun,” she said. But that thought quickly was erased by the overriding concern of getting the deputies to safety.

“I know that they would do the same thing for me,” she said.

Satkiewicz and Maness had been hit while ducking for cover.

Though wounded herself, Satkiewicz was headed toward a squad car to get a tourniquet for Maness, who was bleeding profusely.

Gwizdak half carried Satkiewicz as they made their way crouching behind squad cars. “Khalia was so strong and amazing,” she said.

Meanwhile, Hueramo made his way to Maness, who was lying in the middle of the street, about 150 feet from the driveway of the shooter's house. A wrought iron fence stood in Hueramo's path to the wounded deputy, so Hueramo had to run about 50 yards toward the shooter's house, then double back for Maness. Once there, Hueramo applied the tourniquet to Maness' left leg.

Hueramo began dragging Maness along the 200-yard fence and radioed Gwizdak for help.

“I looked up and saw a big pool of blood behind him. I thought the tourniquet got loose,” Hueramo said. “Nobody was shooting at us at the time, but I didn't know where the shooter was.”

By this time, Gwizdak had handed off Satkiewicz to another Island Lake officer who arrived at the scene. She helped Hueramo drag Maness another 75 yards to safety.

Hueramo said he was getting ready to take Maness to the hospital in his own squad car when the ambulance arrived.

With both deputies loaded onto the ambulance, Hueramo and Gwizdak set up a perimeter.

“Our intel at the time was (the shooter) was still at the house,” Hueramo said. “We were just waiting for SWAT.”

Scott B. Peters was eventually captured after a 16-hour manhunt and charged with two counts of attempted first-degree murder of a police officer.

Satkiewicz, 39, is recovering at home after undergoing surgery at Centegra Hospital-McHenry. Maness, 46, is at Advocate Condell Medical Center in Libertyville undergoing additional surgeries.

Island Lake Police Chief Don Bero said his officers acted “courageously” and did what they were trained to do.

“It was a terrifying situation over there,” he said. “They were calm and cool.”

Gwizdak said she went home later that day and hugged her 12-year-old daughter, Jessica, a bit tighter.

Jessica had been on lockdown at Richard Bernotas Middle School in Crystal Lake during the manhunt. She later called all her friends to tell them how her mom saved the day, Gwizdak said.

“That made me feel good because that's what every mom wants to be ... a role model for their child,” she said. “I'm very humbled by all of this. It's obviously life changing. We didn't tell anybody. You don't think of yourself as a hero. You are just happy that you (did) your job.”

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McHenry County Sheriff's deputies Khalia Satkiewicz, left and Dwight Maness.Both were shot in Holiday Hills on Thursday, October 16th.
  Island Lake police officers Gilbert Hueramo and Victoria Gwizdak say they were just doing their jobs when they rescued two wounded deputies in Holiday Hills. Steve Lundy/slundy@dailyherald.com
  Island Lake police officers Victoria Gwizdak and Gilbert Hueramo saved the lives of two wounded McHenry County Sheriff's deputies last week in Holiday Hills. Steve Lundy/slundy@dailyherald.com
  Island Lake police officers Gilbert Hueramo and Victoria Gwizdak work in a squad car. The officers saved the lives of two wounded McHenry County Sheriff's deputies last week in Holiday Hills, but say they were just doing their jobs and don't feel like heroes. Steve Lundy/slundy@dailyherald.com
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