KOOTENAI COUNTRY, Idaho – Three Kootenai County deputies will receive medals of honor for their actions at the Canfield mountain ambush.
Deputies Harvey Ballman, Arek Brock and Josh Orr will be presented with the Kootenai County Sheriff’s Office Medal of Honor award and the Attorney General’s Medal of Honor award, Sheriff Bob Norris announced on Tuesday.
The Kootenai County Sheriff’s Office Medal of Honor is the highest award presented by the sheriff’s office.
“It is a privilege to recognize these deputies’ heroic actions and honor them with this award. Their selfless courage saved lives and exemplifies the finest of Idaho law enforcement,” Idaho Attorney General Raul Labrador said.
On June 29,2025, the three deputies responded to Canfield mountain, where two firefighters were killed and another was injured after being shot while responding to a fire.
The deputies rescued the injured firefighter, another trapped firefighter and five civilians while the fire continued to burn around them. They also extracted the two murdered firefighters as the fire began to spread.
Sheriff Bob Norris said, “In the face of danger and the unknown, with disregard for their own personal safety, Deputies Ballman, Brock and Orr acted heroically to save lives and remove the two murdered firefighters from the approaching wildland fire. Kootenai County residents should feel safe and secure knowing that we have deputy sheriffs willing to sacrifice themselves to protect and serve our community. It is an honor to work side by side with each of them.”
