MARINE CORPS AIR STATION IWAKUNI, Japan -- The government station wagon creeps to a stop outside the north side flight line and an undersized weathered man carefully gets out of the car. After a slight struggle to gain his composure, the older man hobbles toward the gate and his savior. The hero towers over the man, who is obviously twice his age, the two lock eyes for a moment and though they have never before been formally introduced, rush to embrace each other as if meeting with a long lost childhood friend.
After spending a punishing month and a half in the hospital recovering from second and third degree burns, Masayoshi Tanabe was finally offered the opportunity to meet with Sgt. Bryan D. Stinger, the man who rescued him from a horrific fire accident, Jan. 10.
Stinger, Marine Fighter Attack Squadron 312 armament equipment non-commissioned officer in charge, was simply doing what he believed any Marine would have done, when he quickly put out the fire Tanabe had been a victim to, Nov. 5.
The accident began when Tanabe was filling a generator, which had been unknowingly leaking fuel. Suddenly, his pants caught fire and quickly spread throughout the immediate area.
“At the time, I was unaware the generator had been leaking,” explained Tanabe, wishing he could turn back time.
Stinger was outside a nearby club with his friends all set to dig into a delicious barbecue, when he heard some commotion down the street.
“I heard people screaming down the road. When I looked over to see what was going on, I saw a series of flames rising about three to four feet high around a black car,” said Stinger.
He quickly rushed into the club and calmly asked the bartender for a fire extinguisher and asked him to call the fire department. Knowing all to well the disaster needed immediate attention, Stinger proceeded out the door with a fire extinguisher clutched in his hands.
With a fierce determination and plenty of fire to put out, Stinger rushed to put out the flames.
“When I came up to the fire, I pulled the pin off the fire extinguisher and started putting out the fire where it was closest to the street and worked my way toward a white roll-up garage door which was black from the flames,” said the Philadelphia native.
While Stinger doesn’t recall seeing Tanabe on fire, Tanabe credits Stinger for saving his life.
“I thought he was superman,” said Tanabe. “The sergeant is a very friendly man. I was very glad that he helped me.”
After the fire department arrived, Stinger was unable to communicate with them. Knowing the situation was well under control, he headed back to the club only wanting to relax and enjoy the rest of the night with his friends, never thinking for a second he was a hero.
“I was a volunteer fire fighter for two years before I joined the Marine Corps, so it was nothing I hadn’t seen before,” said the humble 21-year-old.
For some, Stinger was just doing what he does best, solving a problem.
“Stinger has always been able to remain calm in high tempo situations,” said Master Sgt. David L. Ruesing, VMFA-312 ordnance chief and Conway, Ark. native. “He is just that type of individual. If he sees any type of problem, he jumps in and fixes it.”
Stinger and Tanabe spent their reunion learning about each other and finally putting the mystery of each other behind them.
“It was a great experience to meet with Tanabe and actually put a face to the story,” said Stinger. “I am just glad that he came out of it ok.”
After all was said and done, Stinger still believes he is not a hero, just a Marine doing what needed to be done.
“To me it’s just doing a duty. Even if you’re a Marine or a fire fighter, it’s just being a human being and helping somebody when they are in need.”