Selfless acts of heroism should be applauded
It’s funny how unlikely heroes surface when we need them most. An everyday John Doe can become the champion of the day. We see it on the TV news or in the paper, but occasionally we are lucky enough to see it in real life.
On Wednesday morning, at the intersection of Jefferson and Montgomery streets, an 18-wheeler ran a red light and slammed into the driver’s side of a van. The van flipped onto its side in the blink of an eye, trapping the passengers.
People rushed to the scene, their feet crunching on shattered glass on the asphalt. The driver was inside, tending to the van’s passengers. A woman was trapped beneath a wheelchair. The man sitting in the chair wasn’t able to lift himself and get off the woman. A man on his way to get a cup of coffee man walked up. He took of his denim jacket. He asked what had happened. He said he was a nursing-school graduate, trained for emergencies.
“Does someone have 911 on the phone? Good. We need to get these people out as quickly as possible,” Adam Mitchell said calmly. The sound of sirens grew louder as Mitchell crawled into the wreckage.
Police officers and EMTs soon surrounded the van. After struggling for 10 minutes inside the cramped space, everyone got out alive. The last person to emerge was Mitchell. As quickly as he appeared, he was gone.
The world needs more Adam Mitchells, people who know what to do when, for many, panic sets in. He sprang into action.
And what a fine example of how well Georgia College’s nursing school trains its students, and how a Bobcat is prepared for anything life throws his way.
Acts of selflessness like this are few and far between. The Colonnade is proud to report that Mitchell stepped up. What he did was, in a word, inspiring.
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