Firemen push disabled veteran home after electric wheelchair battery dies
Three firemen saved a disabled veteran whose wheelchair broke down, pushing him home in the searing heat.
On Tuesday afternoon, the Raytown Fire Protection District in Missouri received an urgent call to assist an elderly man in a wheelchair. The man was on his way to fish in a small pond near a Catholic Cemetery when his electric wheelchair got stuck in a patch of muddy grass.
“Neighbors tried freeing the man but no one was strong enough so they called us,” deputy chief Mike Hunley, tells Yahoo Lifestyle.
The firemen were able to lift the wheelchair onto dry land, however its battery was running low. “They had to get this man home, and there was no better way than to push him,” says Hunley.
Switching the chair into neutral mode, the firefighters pushed the man seven blocks to his home in 80-degree weather, with a partner trailing behind in the firetruck.
The department shot a Facebook video from inside the truck, writing, “What happens when a fire truck comes upon a citizen who’s electric wheelchair has stopped working. You get out and help them home.”
Video of the fatigued firemen has been watched almost 48,000 times and the firemen were dubbed “true heroes.”
Hunley tells Yahoo Lifestyle that during the 30-minute trip, the man didn’t offer much information about himself — only that he was a disabled veteran and very grateful. Back home, the firefighters pushed the man up a ramp so he could charge his battery.
“Most people call the fire department when they’re not sure who else to call, but this one was a little unique,” Hunley tells Yahoo Lifestyle. “Helping people is a gratifying job.”
Read more from Yahoo Lifestyle:
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