My most memorable event in my fire career was in 1996. I had just finished my EMT-B school and was waiting on to take my state test. I was working at my job with another co-worker running forklifts. We were preparing to unload a semi trailer. As I was putting the ramp inside the trailer and I told the driver to watch out for the forklifts.

I heard a scream that haunted me for a long time. As I turned to see what happened, I saw the driver had walked in behind a forklift as it was backing up. It knocked him down and ran up onto his leg. I saw the leg explode, sending pieces of the bone scattering.

I felt a cold chill came over me. It all seemed to be in slow motion. I knew if we didn’t do something, this man would die. We were in the back of the warehouse and no one ever came back there. I told my co-worker to call 911 and then call for a supervisor.

I then knelt beside the injured truck driver and cut the pant leg where there was once a leg. The entire time, I continued talking to the driver and tried to remember my training. The ankle was attached by just the calf tissue up to the knee. Everything else was gone. I held pressure at the groin area to control the bleeding.

By this time my co-worker came back and let me know a ambulance was in route and a supervisor was on his way. By the time the supervisor got there a crowd was forming around us. What seemed like an eternity, the ambulance arrived. I helped package the driver up by rolling gauge in the open portion of the leg.

Afterwards it hit me what had happened. I would wake up at nights in a cold sweat hearing a scream. I couldn’t eat or work. My EMT instructor suggested a stress debriefing session which was set up. I never thought it could happen to me, but I am thankful for those that helped me. I got counseling for a few days and it helped me greatly.

I did get to meet the driver, who thanked me and said that if I hadn’t reacted, he wouldn’t be here. They were able to save the leg and he was walking with a walker.