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Off-duty EMT rescues man trapped under car in Utah County

Posted at 9:17 PM, May 16, 2018
and last updated 2018-05-16 23:17:15-04

SANTAQUIN, Utah -- A man was nearly crushed to death after a car collapsed on him Wednesday afternoon, but thankfully an off-duty EMT was at the right place with the right tools to save his life.

A man was working under his car when it started crushing him. Although he was in a lot of pain, he was able to grab his phone and call 911.

But little did he know, his rescuers were about 100 yards away from him.

An ordinary afternoon at an auto shop in Santaquin took a turn when Chris Judd got an alert on her phone that a man was trapped under a car. And even though she wasn’t the on-call EMT, she couldn’t help but notice the address listed was right across the street from her. Without hesitation, she called out to her husband.

“I just told Keith ‘There’s a car on the guy across the street, grab the jack, let's go,’” Chris recalled.

As they were crossing the street they could see the white car parked in the driveway.

“I wasn't sure what to expect as we were heading over there, I didn't know how bad it was going to be,” Keith said.

As they ran up to the scene, all they saw were the man’s legs and the car partially collapsed.

“Two separate jacks to lift the car in a precarious situation, it was on a slope, there was a whole lot of ways that could have gone a lot worse a lot quickly,” Keith said.

Knowing every second counted, the couple went to work.

“I just moved around to the first spot I could get in past him and put the jack under and get the car up,” Keith said.

Chris could tell the man was in pain.

“I was just asking him if he could breathe and stuff like that, just mostly to tell he was talking cause if he's talking he's getting air,” Chris said.

And with each pump of the jack, Keith raised the car.

“As soon as it got off his chest he tried to scoot out, I tried to get him to calm down a minute, 'You're gonna be OK,'” Chris said.

That man is going to be OK, all because these two got there so quickly.

“Just another block away would have made a big difference,” Keith said.

The right place, the right time and the right tools.

“We had what we needed to get the car off of him when I knew the ambulance really wouldn't,” Chris said.

And after a heroic afternoon it's back to work for the Judds.

“I try not to think about the what if's, it's best to go with the turnout is great and we're glad he's OK,” Chris said.

The man who was rescued is now home. Chris says she does not feel like a hero but that days like today just come with the job of being a volunteer EMT.