Truck drivers are already heroes. Everything we need and use is delivered by truck. However, some go completely above and beyond the call of duty. We hear a lot about these amazing individuals and want to highlight their great work.
Jason Harte
Harte was driving down the interstate in July 2012 when he saw something frightening. A speeding truck hit a minivan, pushing it off the road. Immediately Harte sprang into action. He approached the van and saw a man and woman holding a small baby both trying to leave the vehicle. In the backseat, three other children were trying to get out. Harte dialed 911, helped the couple escape and then rescued the one child he could reach in the back of the smashed van. With the help of other good Samaritans, he pried open the van to remove the other two kids. While waiting for the paramedics, Harte used his training as an EMT to treat the family’s injuries. On March 21, Goodyear recognized him at its 30th Highway Hero.
Christopher Burgess
July of 2012 is when Chris Burgess became a hero and also lost his life. Burgess was driving his truck, filled with 15 tons of sand down a steep hill in Akron, Ohio when the brakes failed. He careened down the road and honked his horn, warning people as his truck sailed out of control through a busy intersection. Fortunately no one was hurt on the road, but Burgess’ truck was headed for a major shopping center. Witnesses say Burgess then made an impossibly-sharp left turn and instead drove his truck into a nearby river, sacrificing himself so he wouldn’t hurt anyone around him. Burgess was a runner up at this year’s Goodyear Highway Hero awards.
Dave Nelson
In February 2013, Pam Carter and her 7-year-old daughter were driving near Birmingham, Alabama to meet husband and father Air Force Capt. Ryan Carter, who they had not seen for three years. While traveling they ran off the road and hit a sign. Pam’s daughter Vicki stopped breathing and had no pulse as a result of the accident and needed help. Pam tried to flag down oncoming traffic and for a while, no one stopped. Suddenly, trucker Dave Nelson, en route to Dallas, pulled his rig over and immediately came to the Carters’ aid. He performed CPR on Vicki and waited with Pam until an ambulance arrived. At the hospital, the family learned Nelson’s measures saved the young girl’s life. Nelson and the Carters are still close.