Photo By Alun Thomas | Staff Sgt. Zachary Ziolko (left), Staff Sgt. Nathan Kimberly (center) and Sgt. 1st...... read more read more
PHOENIX – It was shaping up as a routine day for the recruiters at Paradise Valley Recruiting Station, when a loud and violent boom reverberated through the office.
Two cars had collided directly outside their station, as smoke quickly billowed through the air, the thick plumes causing a scene of panic and distress.
For the recruiters, this meant springing into action and rendering aid as quickly as possible, to alleviate further injuries and assist those on the ground.
The decisive actions of the recruiters would end up helping first responders immensely, their Army training coming to the fore.
The accident occurred on the morning of Nov. 9 as the station was going over their plans for the day, when the noise from the collision startled everyone, said Staff Sgt. Andrei Priimak, recruiter, Phoenix North Recruiting Company.
“I was facing the window, when I heard a loud bang. I looked and saw smoke rising and a huge cloud of dust,” Priimak said. “I realized it was a car wreck, so I stood up and saw the two cars immobilized. I ran out of the office and told the others to come with me.”
Priimak quickly estimated the dire situation and saw one of the drivers staggering from her vehicle.
“When we got to the scene, one lady had gotten out of her car on her own and didn’t appear to be injured. The lady who had caused the accident was still stuck in her car, so we opened the door and tried to pull her out,” Priimak said. “I asked if she was hurt and saw the blood pouring from a wound on her head. The car was stuck on a high RPM and her foot was stuck on the gas pedal, so I reached in and turned the car off.”
Sgt. 1st Class Kyle Davis, Paradise Valley station commander, said the recruiters pulled the woman out to treat her injuries with a first aid kit they had.
“We started treating her and got her out on the sidewalk when we realized she had no further injuries. A couple of nurses happened to be there and started helping us out. We did everything we could and waited for the paramedics to show up,” Davis said. “She was bleeding a lot and looked like she might have a possible concussion. We got into the bag, got some combat gauze on the wound and started wrapping it up.”
The outcome of the accident could have been far worse, Davis said.
“It was a fairly bad scene. It turned out the young girl was epileptic and may have suffered a seizure, causing her to jump the median and collide with the other car at around 45 miles per hour,” he added. “The passenger side on her car was completely caved in. It was a hard hit. If anyone had been sitting on that side, they wouldn’t have made it.”
Also assisting from the station was Staff Sgt. Zachary Ziolko, who said he had never faced an incident like this, despite his deployment experiences.
“I joked with my friends about how I’ve been in combat, been shot at, but never had to give first aid,” Ziolko said. “The last place I expected to do was at a recruiting station. I’m glad I was able to help the victim and apply a pressure dressing.”
Sharing this sentiment was Staff Sgt. Nathan Kimberly, who praised his Army training for being hugely important in attending to the victim.
“The door was mangled, so we had to pry it open. The victim started screaming when Primak tried to get her out. I think we thought she was hurt a lot worse, but we all carried her to the sidewalk,” Kimberley said. “It was just a natural reaction on our part. If I didn’t have first-aid training from the Army, I wouldn’t have been able to assist the way I did. This was the first time I’ve ever been in a situation like this.”
With the arrival of emergency medical technicians and other relief, the recruiters were able to hand off the scene and inform medical personnel key information of the accident and victim status, said Davis.
The actions of his recruiters were in keeping with the highest of Army values and he couldn’t be prouder of his team, Davis said.
“I’m so proud of my guys, I love everything about what they did. The longer you stay in the Army, the bigger chance you may run into something like this during your career,” Davis said. “Having that prior training and knowing what to do in a high stress situation, made this really smooth for us. I couldn’t be prouder and this is proof that training pays off.”
| Date Taken: | 12.04.2020 |
| Date Posted: | 12.04.2020 15:18 |
| Story ID: | 384252 |
| Location: | PHOENIX, ARIZONA, US |
| Web Views: | 211 |
| Downloads: | 1 |
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