We would all like to think that we would no how to react in an emergency situation, but would we? These Redditors know that they have the goods, because they’ve actually been in a scenario where they had to step up and save a life. Link on the last page.
I was in an airport at the top of an escalator where a woman was trying to deal with her luggage, a baby in a stroller, and a toddler. Her toddler slipped right before they got on the escalator and without thinking she reached for him and, in doing so, accidentally let go of the baby stroller that was halfway on the top stair of the escalator.
The stroller started to tilt downward and when I realized it was about to completely tip over, I dropped my own luggage, grabbed it and brought it back up to the landing. No idea if I actually saved the kids life, but the escalator was empty, so I imagine it would have fallen all the way down.
synaesthetist
“Hey man, stay away from the edge of that cliff.”
And he did.
PotatoMusicBinge
I’ve had 2 situations, both based on the same ailment within the same weekend.
My dad’s deathly allergic to bees, and keeps and epi-pen in his truck. When I was 11, we were fishing together and he got stung on the neck. His throat was quickly swelling, causing a lack of air and dizziness, but he managed to say “I need you to run to my truck and get my shot, and stick it in my neck. Go as fast as you can and don’t be scared.”
By the time I got back to him, he was wheezing pretty hard, but I gave him his shot, and within 15-20 minutes, he was able to drive himself to the hospital. Fast forward roughly 24 hours. My dad had ordered a new epi-pen, but didn’t have it yet.
We’re working on a treehouse in the backyard and, as luck would have it, he gets stung right under his eye. Within a minute, he can’t see. I vividly remember him saying “Have you ever driven before? You’re about to learn.”
Luckily, I knew the way around our town from lots of bike rides, but learning to drive a manual at 11 years old was a task. But we made it, and he made it.
LGFL5000
My own story is kinda mundane, but I did get a monkey out of it.
I was 11, it was probably a 4th of July picnic at my aunt’s house. Around dusk, when the adults were all eating on the porch, and the kids were scattered who knows where, I was walking across the backyard to get something to eat. As I passed the pool, I saw a small body floating in it. I remember starting to take one of my velvet mary-janes off (my faavorite shoes ever) before I realized I was being stupid and jumped in. It was my 20 month-old cousin, somehow he had crawled up the ladder and fell in. Cousin saved, yada yada.
(continued…)
This response continues on the next page!
So, my grandma told me she would get me anything I wanted, and my stupid 11yo self said “I want a monkey.” Sure enough, a few weeks later, she brought me a monkey (I had forgotten all about it by that time).
It was a spider monkey (I guess I was thinking more like chimp). Nastiest thing ever. My dad built huge cage for it in the garage. I tried to make friends with Kiki, but he still bit the crap out of me. We donated it, cage and all, to a local nature center when it got cold. No regrets.
ChiliFlake
I had plans with a friend- and he didn’t show up. We called him a bunch, and when he finally called back, he said he didn’t feel too well, wasn’t going out. Whatever, no big deal.
He did say I love you a bunch when we hung up, which was also no big deal, we’re all a bunch of mushpots. So fast forward to what I though was the end of my night. I was wasting time on facebook, and his status was really really off. It was sentimental and not funny, and it just struck me as weird.
Soooo, I called his phone a couple of times, and resolved to just ride my bike to his house, to make sure he was okay (it was about 4 am). I thought what I was doing was just kind of silly and overly neurotic, but I’m kind of obsessive and I figured, it would be worth waking him up for. Well, he called me back and I told him why I wanted to make sure he was okay, it turned out he was really messed up and was pondering/sort of attempting suicide.
So I went over and bought him a pizza instead. It was terrifying. He was pretty shocked that I knew something was off, but we’re buddies. I just knew something was off.
boringthings
Some years ago, was out drinking. Waiting for a bus to go home. Saw a group of teenagers in the bus shelter trying to console their friend. Said friend looked like she was either drunk or concussed. Judging from the conversation, that she’d been jumped by another girl from their school and struck her head on a curb, I decided to offer assistance as a first aider.
The kids didn’t like my diagnosis and recommendation to get her to a hospital immediately, as they’d been out underage drinking and their parents would be upset. I finally convinced one of them that her life was in danger, so he dialled 911.
I spent the next twenty minutes trying to keep this girl conscious. Told the kids to keep her head still and to keep the area clear of bystanders.
Her eyes kept rolling up, she kept repeating her words, her pupils were different sizes, it was bad. She was barely responding to pain stimuli when the paramedics showed up. She got strapped to a board and loaded in.
I took the kids to the hospital to be with her and try to convince them to contact their parents. Six hours it took before I got them to get the parents involved. The other kids’ parents arrived and also stayed. Naturally I was treated with some suspicion as a twenty something scruffy thug in white Jordans and a bears jersey.
Her folks then arrived and after some reassurance from the other parents I relayed what I knew. We then all waited together after they got the update from the hospital staff.
She came out with a neck brace. Went out and had a smoke while her folks had an emotional moment. They thanked me, though I was too outside my own body with fatigue and past terror to remember what I said.
I went home at eight in the morning and tried to sleep. Spent the day decompressing instead. Smoked a pack and a half. Quit not too much later after that.
MightyGamera
This article continues on the next page!
The red cross tells me I save 4 lives every time I give blood. So apparently I’ve saved some where around 24 lives.
DanTheLaserMan
Not me, but a friend of mine gave the Heimlich to a buddy in the middle of a Taco Bell after he tried to swallow a burrito whole.
ThunderWaffles
I was a life-guard and pulled a 2 year old off the bottom of a 12 ft well. I guess that counts.
This really oblivious mom was just chilling in her bikini sun tanning and reading. I saw her daughter start to walk/crawl around, away from the water so I wasn’t too worried. I was on break when she fell in, she just got too close to the edge and slipped. I didn’t have the lifeguard tube because I wasn’t on the stand so I blew my whistle 3 times and told the life guard to jump in while I call 911. Well she was a pre-teen princess and panicked. So I got the tube from her and saved the kid, luckily she held her breath so she was okay as soon as I pulled her out. Biggest adrenaline rush ever, and when I took the kid to her mom the mom replied with a snobby “well I’m glad you life guards do more than just hit on girls!” (Trying to be funny I guess…) what a jerk.
kintarben
I was in Hong Kong on business, so my colleague and I went to Repulse Bay. We met up with some girls we’d previously met, drank all day on the beach, hung out, made new friends and we’re all hitting a volleyball when a guy our age (early 20’s) comes up to us his voice in a panic saying his friend is buried and they can’t get him out of the sand. I immediately thought this was some prank, so we go over to the kid and literally all you can see is an arm sticking out of the sand, so we try pulling it and all you can hear is a muffled scream. When we realized what’s going on and tried to get closer, the sand caved in and the arm began frantically waving in a panic.
Immediately I started digging in the sand with 4 other people to find this kids head and then I found it and we dug a small air pocket around his mouth. After about 5 minutes of carefully digging and pulling, we pulled him out. The beach was empty aside from us and it was getting pitch black out.
Kind of crazy I saved some kid’s life in Hong Kong.
rmxc
This article continues on the next page!
Waiting for the bus, random guy wearing sun glasses also waiting for the bus leans over the curb to look to see if the the bus is coming, randomly collapses, so I run into the street where he collapsed and stop cars from running over him and ask him if he is ok, call the cops, and turns out that he was a veteran and he got a blast from a grenade several years ago, has to take meds to help with his migraines, he blacks out randomly.
ceb002
While wounded in Afghanistan I saved my corpsman’s life who took a ton of shrapnel which almost completely severed his jugular. Then the DUSTOFF bird landed between us and the enemy, I carried him about 100m into enemy fire to our DUSTOFF bird. Bird had 15 positive rounds through it and 2 RPGs flew over. Wosrt day of my life.
turborowdy
So my friend had a boyfriend who was insanely cool. I never met him, but by looking at his facebook profile and tumblr, I could tell we had similar interests. Anyway, my friend was a total jerk to him. She treated him like he was a dog and I felt bad. One day I heard they had broken up, so I got his number from a friend of a friend.
At this point, I kinda liked the guy. As I said, we had very similar interests and I found him attractive. I decided to call him, and we talked for a few hours. We eventually started dating. One day he told me that the day I called him, he was on a bridge, about to jump. Apparently his father, who meant the world to him, had just died and he couldn’t cope.
That, along with the breakup, sent him over the edge. He told me that talking to me made him realize there’s things to live for, and he needs to live for his father. If I would have waited just another minute to call him, he would have been dead.
Anonymous
I pulled a guy out of a burning trailer once, he was burned badly and I wound up covered in his blood (not fun for the hour drive home to change clothes).
(continued…)
This response continues on the next page!
I also spotted a pretty large shark cruising in the waves down the beach one day and got a lady out of it’s path (I don’t know if it would have killed or even attacked her, but better to not find out).
I noticed the signs of a concussion in a friend’s wife who had fallen down, and forced her to go to the hospital – Dr. said if she hadn’t received treatment she might have died.
wheresjim
My sister has. She was walking to class and she passed a kid sitting in his car looking to be asleep but he didn’t look ok. She tapped on the window, but no response. She called 911, once the cops and an ambulance arrived she had to get to class. The cop who first reported to the scene called to tell her that the kid had OD’ed and would have died if she hadn’t called them when she did.
She’s awesome and my hero. Not just for her actions on that day, but she is a Social Worker and does amazing things every day.
julz19ski
I saved two lives. About 5 years ago, I performed the Heimlich Maneuver on my wife. About 34 years ago, I quit drinking, saving my own life.
small_e_900
Not me but my dad has 13 documented saves.
He is a master rigger and 13 people were saved by reserve chutes he packed.
kornkobcom
A buddy and I were stationed in Hawaii. We were trying to learn how to surf, cause we were new on the island and didn’t know how much of an butt-kicking it was going to be. I’m 6’1″ and about 220, so it was probably just awkward to watch. Anyway, I had just gotten my butt handed to me by another wave when I look over and see this guy and a young girl pop up out of the water about 40 feet away. He looks right at me and and just shouts “Help.” Really monotonously.
(continued…)
This response continues on the next page!
I start swimming toward them, and watch as a wave rolls in, and the water level begins them recedes, creating this big bowl of rock that the wave would slam into, settle, and recede again. It was basically a big horseshoe facing north that water would just spin cycle against. As soon as you came above water again and started trying to get away, another wave came in to push you back down. And I was swimming right into it.
I finally reach them, and slam my board into this guy, and tell him to get to the rocks. I grab his kid as he paddles away. I see my buddy running along the rocks to grab him, and the first wave slams me under. I just held the girl over my head and started kicking. I made a little progress toward the rocks, before it happened again. This time, I was bounced off the rocks, and the wind just left me. I paddled again, and got her above water, but I had taken a bit longer. As soon as I broke the surface, I saw the next wave. I turned, and saw my buddy. I just remember that he looked scared. I screamed “Catch her!” And chucked her like a shot put as the momentum of the water surged me forward. He caught her, and I fell. I had the presence of mind to turn, so that my back slammed into the rock and coral, and I was run against it like I was a piece of cheese run along a grater with a firehose.
I genuinely didn’t think I was gonna make it that last time. Just before I blacked out, I felt the rocks, and I clambered up them. My buddy grabbed my shorts, and I was out.
I never got their names. The father just said “Thanks,” as was laying down, bleeding all over the sand. He grabs his daughter by the arm, and dragged her back to their spot on the beach. My buddy bought her an ice cream, and we left.
Chester_SMASH