Three heroes were honored after they rushed in to help the victims of a fiery boat explosion in Fort Lauderdale. The City of Fort Lauderdale on Wednesday gave the Good Samaritan Award to the three bystanders for their courageous efforts on Dec. 23. “There is no doubt in my mind that their quick response saved lives, saved properties and truly made a difference that day,” said Fort Lauderdale Fire Rescue Chief Stephen Gollan. Tamer Damiati, an employee of 15th Street Fisheries; Scott Stempkowski, his manager; and Moses Lopez all stepped in to save the victims of the boat fire that occurred at Lauderdale Marina. Around 6 p.m. that day, the boat exploded and erupted in flames while docked at the fueling station. One person died and six others were injured. Immediately following the explosions, the three heroes rushed to help. “It was a very hard moment to be like, ‘OK, listen, I’m gonna go out there and try to save somebody’s life,’ when an explosion just happened,” said Damiati. Damiati was serving as a waiter that night when the explosion occurred. He said he ditched his job description and jumped into action. “It is scary. A lot of people did leave, but we were the ones that did go out there and try to do our best to save the people that were injured and were hurt,” said Damiati. Lopez was standing next to the boat when it exploded. Cameras captured him quickly stepping in and carrying an injured woman to safety. “A big gash of light just comes my way, and then you just kind of close your eyes and hope for the best,” he said. “I did anything I could to try and save some people.” After the victim was safe, he began unwinding a full hose to begin putting the fire out before fire officials were able to arrive. Stempkowski said his quick thinking saved lives. “You had two choices. You either run away or run towards it, and we ran towards it,” he said. All three good Samaritans hope that this tragic incident serves as a reminder for everyone to always take extra precaution when fueling any vessel.