Highway Angels to the rescue

Christopher Lloyd, a driver for Airline Transportation Specialists Inc., Eagan, Minn., was chosen by a public vote of more than 1,600 participants as this year’s Truckload Carriers Association Highway Angel of the Year.

The award, sponsored by EpicVue, was presented during Truckload 2022: Las Vegas at the Wynn Las Vegas.

Lloyd’s nomination came after he helped rescue a driver and passenger from their vehicle that started on fire after they crashed into a power pole on an early morning in November 2020, according to a TCA news release.

After calling 911, Lloyd attempted to extinguish the flames before pulling the victims to safety.

“I couldn’t get the flames out completely,” Lloyd said in the TCA news release. “I ran back to the truck for a winch bar and my 10-pound hazmat extinguisher to finish putting the fire out and to bust out the windows.”

Both individuals were in critical condition once emergency personnel were able to reach them, according to the news release. If not for Lloyd calling 911, the pair might not have made it, said an officer on the scene.

“That wasn’t my normal run that night,” Lloyd said in the TCA news release. “The driver that usually takes that run had broken down. The dispatcher called and asked if I could take it. I was delayed by over an hour, but somehow it all lined up for me to be there at that precise moment in time to hopefully save their lives.”

Lloyd, a Forest, Miss., resident, attended firefighter academy after becoming a volunteer firefighter at 16. He also spent time in the Coast Guard.

All of that training came back to him, “just like it was yesterday,” he said in the news release.

Other Highway Angel finalists

Other finalists for the 2021 award were OOIDA member and driver for McKinney, Texas-based CKJ Transport Addis Tekelu, and Calvin and Corey Williams, twin brothers and drivers for Armellini Express Lines Inc., Palm City Fla.

Tekelu was nominated for his efforts in assisting a driver who veered off the road into a wooded area at night. After calling 911, Tekelu followed the tire tracks and found the wrecked vehicle with the driver still trapped inside. He waited with the driver until emergency personnel arrived on the scene.

“I called 911 right away and asked the dispatcher to guide me on what to do,” Tekelu said in a TCA news release. “I saw a woman trapped in the vehicle with lacerations to her head.”

He quickly began removing debris to get to the driver. The windshield was shattered, and the driver’s side was smashed in.”

The OOIDA member has been a driver for 10 years.

“I am originally from Ethiopia,” Tekelu said. “I’ve seen a lot in my life. In 1984-85 we were in a big civil war. Lots of people were starving. I’m one of those kids who survived. I learned to be kind and to love. Love doesn’t have any color, no boundaries. This is a great nation to give me an opportunity to enjoy the American dream. I know God will protect me and wants me to serve Him. One of the things is to love people and to be kind. We need to do the right thing out there, especially truckers. We are the backbone of this country.”

The Williams brothers climbed down an embankment in below-freezing temperatures and remained with the injured individuals for several hours until help arrived.

“They hit a tree so hard it knocked the headlights out and pushed the motor and transmission into the cab,” Calvin said. “The windows were broken out, and the brothers found a male passenger conscious, lying on the ground with a serious leg injury. The female driver was about 30 feet from the vehicle. She was bleeding and shivering and couldn’t move her legs. She kept saying she had fallen asleep at the wheel. She looked like she was going into shock.”

Corey said it was only 23 degrees that night.

“They were cold and wet and freezing,” he said. “It was a bad situation.”

One of the brothers climbed back up to the truck to grab blankets. Because of the area’s remote location, it was an hour before the police arrived and another hour before the EMTs reached them.

“That was a crazy night,” Corey added. “We stayed with them for four hours until the sun came up, with no jackets on in 23 degrees. When we heard those sirens, it was the best sound I’d heard all night.”

The brothers have been driving together for 13 years.

“I’m glad we stopped,” Calvin said. “There aren’t any houses back there. No one would have seen them from the highway. All I was thinking about was saving a human life. We didn’t know what type of situation was down there. We didn’t care.” LL