FORT WAYNE, Ind. (WOWO): A pair of Allen County deputies have received the first Allen County Employee of the Year Award.

Deputies Christopher Amstutz and Kenneth Litzenberg were honored Mmonday with the newly-established award for their life-saving efforts in separate incidents.

Amstuz was nominated for putting his personal safety aside and jumping into frigid water to rescue the driver of a vehicle that had slid off the road and flipped into a ditch on January 16th, 2016.

Litzenberg was nominated for rescuing a driver from their vehicle, which had overturned in a retention pond, just nine days earlier.

Along with their individual awards, their names will be placed on a perpetual plaque that will include the names of future winners each year.