Chicago's Bravest Stories Podcast

About Chicago's Bravest Stories Podcast

Listen in on the true stories of the first responders from the Chicagoland area and across the country as they tell the story in their own words. Get a peek behind the curtain of the men and women who show up on your worst day sometimes risking their own lives in process. Unscripted and heartfelt a podcast of Chicagos bravest stories.

Publisher

Fire & Iron Media

Category

society & culture

Language

en

Explicit

No

First episode

21 May 2019

Latest episode

13 May 2026

Latest episodes

2 of 137 episodes have a transcript.

1. 

   13 May 2026TRANSCRIPT

   Episode 82 Pt 2: Medal of Valor recipient Gino Casciola and crew from the Addison Fire Dept. Lt. Ralph Holdridge, Lt. Eric Medernach and FF/PM Louie DiGioia

   Medal of Valor recipient Gino Casciola and crew from Addison Fire Dept. share their harrowing experience getting disoriented during a structure fire, highlighting Casciola's bravery in rescuing lost firefighters.

2. 

   3 May 2026TRANSCRIPT

   Episode 82 Pt 1: Medal of Valor recipient Gino Casciola and crew from the Addison Fire Dept. Lt. Ralph Holdridge, Lt. Eric Medernach and FF/PM Louie DiGioia

   Episode 1 with the crew from the Addison Fire Dept. a routine commercial structure fire, if there is a such thing, occured on May 21 2025 where members of E71 and E72 got disoriented and lost when fire conditions changed in an instant. Listen how FF Casciola entered the structure more than once and helped members out of the structure.

3. 

   11 Feb 2026

   Episode 81 part 2 : Lt. Bob Opiola member of The Chicago fire department and special guest host Lt. Josh Hill with the Frontline Mortgage Team

   Bob Opiola is a 17 year member of the chicago fire department and talks about some lessons learned at a couple of close calls, with guest host Josh from the Frontline Mortgage Team

Inside a recent episode

Episode 82 Pt 2: Medal of Valor recipient Gino Casciola and crew from the Addison Fire Dept. Lt. Ralph Holdridge, Lt. Eric Medernach and FF/PM Louie DiGioia

Published 13 May 2026 · Transcript excerpt

[…] They're turning around and zero visibility. I had zero visibility, but I kind of knew where my steps were. I'm like, I'm 20 steps in. Let me just turn around and head the same way. Okay. So I kind of knew where I was, you know. So... And I just grabbed him by grabbing by the chest. I kind of had him in a weird, not like a traditional, like how we train or anything. It was just kind of like I had him by the chest and by the shoulder straps and just yanked him out. And were you able to help with that? He just manhandled you, huh? Did he have to drag you, or was he just like a stern guiding? I thought I was floating, so. […]

Who has been a guest on Chicago's Bravest Stories Podcast

Names identified in recent episode analyses. Showing up to five guests.

• Gino Casciola
• Ralph Holdridge
• Eric Medernach
• Louie DiGioia

Reach and audience

Public platform figures. Ratings count people who left a rating, not total listeners.

Apple Podcasts (US)

4.9 / 5

103 ratings

Contact Chicago's Bravest Stories Podcast

Guest appearances

Books guests

Based on episode analysis; this does not confirm that the show is currently accepting guests.

Questions about Chicago's Bravest Stories Podcast