by SALLY GOLDENBERG
A Bronx firefighter was honored yesterday with the FDNY's top award for his heroism in battling smoke and heat to save five people trapped in a burning building last year.
Lt. James Congema won the James Gordon Bennett Medal at the department's annual Medal Day Ceremony outside City Hall.
In a statement, Mayor Bloomberg described Congema's ordeal battling the flames and heat at 171 Unionport Road.
After pulling two people to safety, he returned to search for others.
"Although the spreading flames threatened to trap Lt. Congema, he crawled deeper into the apartment and found two more victims who were carried outside by fellow firefighters," the mayor noted.
"Physically exhausted, Lt. Congema managed to search the last bedroom and found an unconscious young girl, whom he brought to safety."
The ceremony marked the first time EMS workers were honored alongside FDNY, a move that rankled some firefighters.
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