Heroic Police Officers Save Car Accident Victim

“I thank God for allowing us to save this young man”

WILSON’S MILLS – Two police officers are being credited with saving the life of an accident victim. Officers Nelson Robinson and Erin Sinclair with the Wilson’s Mills Police Department helped save a young man’s life while on patrol.

Around 9:35pm Monday, Officer Robinson stopped to assist what he thought was a disabled motorist beside the westbound lane of Highway 70. It turned out the motorist had just stopped at an accident scene and 911 had not been notified.

Officer Robinson observed an overturned vehicle off the roadway and called for immediate assistance. Officer Sinclair was nearby and quickly responded.

The officers found an overturned car in a retention ditch constructed as part of the US 70 construction project. The driver had been ejected from the car and was lying face down on an embankment.

Finding no pulse, Officer Sinclair began CPR on the male victim. The man briefly regained consciousness, then began to slip away again. No longer feeling a pulse, Officer Sinclair restarted CPR and used an automated external defibrillator (AED) device until Johnston County EMS arrived.

Police Chief A.Z. Williams said it was later determined the vehicle, a 2004 Ford Mustang, ran off the roadway and overturned 3 to 4 times, ejecting the 25 year-old driver. The victim was ejected approximately 30 feet from where the car came to rest.

Chief Williams said Officer Robinson’s disabled motor vehicle assistance led to Officer Sinclair’s quick response and subsequent life saving efforts. The police chief called the two officers “heroes.”

“When I first arrived on scene, I knew that the next steps I took would be crucial to him. I just knew I would have immediately failed him if I didn’t at least try. It is our job to be a ray of hope for people in their darkest times. I thank God for allowing us to save this young man,” Officer Sinclair said Tuesday.

Officer Robinson added, “I felt good that we were able to locate him and assist him with the medical needs that he had required in that moment. It felt good to know that we were giving him a second chance at life. Our prayers go out to him and his family.”

At last report, the victim was in critical condition at Wake Medical Center in Raleigh.