Security forces Airmen help victims of car accident
Posted 6/10/2010
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by Capt. Avonne D. Rosario
10th Security Forces Squadron
6/10/2010 - CREECH AIR FORCE BASE, Nev. (AFNS) -- Four Airmen provided medical care to a mother and child after securing the scene of a vehicle accident May 28, on a highway near here, where they were conducting pre-deployment training prior to their deployment to Iraq.
The Airmen were first on the scene of a major vehicle rollover accident with a woman and child trapped inside a vehicle 12 miles south of Creech Air Force Base.
"The sedan was completely totaled and we knew we had to move fast," said Staff Sgt. Leonard Antonio, from the 316th Security Forces Squadron at Andrews AFB, Md., who, along with fellow squadron members Airman 1st Class Gregory Cline and Airman 1st Class Joshua Meyers, came upon the scene immediately following the accident. "Debris covered the road, blood was spattered everywhere and vehicles were zooming by at fast rates of speed. The head of the driver was wedged in the back rear floorboard, and a 9-year old boy in the back seat was frantic."
The three Airmen grabbed what few medical supplies they had on hand and initiated actions to make the scene safe and secure. They directed traffic, cleaned minor wounds from the child and began calming the victims.
Two other Airmen, Staff Sgt. Cindy Lancaster, also from the 316th SFS, and Senior Airman Brian Hannon, from the 6th SFS at MacDill AFB, Fla., were towing a vehicle when they received a call from the Airmen on scene.
They rushed to assist, and upon arrival, observed the driver's hand to be severely lacerated.
Airman Hannon, a security forces-certified emergency medical technician, determined the driver was conscious, and wanted to ensure she did not go into shock and bleed to death.
Once rescue crews and paramedics arrived, Airman Hannon assisted with cutting out the door of the vehicle. He then entered the vehicle, provided the trapped driver with oxygen, wrapped her hand with gauze and applied a tourniquet to her upper arm.
He also helped paramedics extract the victim and prepared the landing sight for a life flight helicopter to land.
"A defender's job doesn't stop at 4:30 p.m.," Airman Hannon concluded. "Our job is not just to protect our military personnel, but to protect human life at all costs -- period. That is just what we do."
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