Sergeant saves a life, receives command award Published June 5, 2010 GRISSOM AIR RESERVE BASE, Ind. -- Sitting and waiting, surrounded by cornfields as a red traffic light makes the entire world appear to grind to a halt; then, suddenly a monotonous morning drive is torn apart by sounds and sights of tractor-trailers slamming into each other, sending mangled metal and dangerous debris flying. While it sounds like a scene straight out of a Hollywood blockbuster, this is exactly what one Airman witnessed when heading to the base for work earlier this year. Faced with chaos and sheer devastation, Staff Sgt. Joseph Meyer stopped his car, raced to the crash site and provided first-aid to one of the drivers; a feat for which he was recently awarded an Air Force Command Civilian Award for valor. "I thought I was going to find someone dead," recalled Sergeant Meyer, who is a pneudraulic systems mechanic with the 434th Maintenance Squadron. He ran to the semi that was hit in the driver side door, where he found the door wedged closed by a mirror. He bent the mirror back to gain access and found the driver unconscious and bleeding profusely from the head. "I jumped in the truck, found a roll of paper towels and used them to apply pressure to his head wound," he explained. "I checked his pulse and breathing, determined he had both, stabilized his head and kept talking to him." Sergeant Meyer continued to care for the driver until emergency medical technicians arrived. After the EMTs put the driver in a neck brace, he helped move the injured man onto a backboard and into a waiting ambulance. Wanting to know if his efforts helped save the man's life, the sergeant said he later followed up on the injured driver and learned he had survived. "I was worried about him and his family," he added. Sergeant Meyer credits his extensive training in self aid and buddy care from the Air Force for giving him the ability to help the man. "Emergencies happen in an instant," he said. "Just be prepared and relay on your training." When asked why he acted to quickly to help, Sergeant Meyer said it wasn't really a choice. "I honestly don't know why I decided to help, I just jumped right in," he said. "I guess I just felt it was the right thing to do. "I would only hope if it was me hurt in that truck, someone would take the time to help me," he added.
