President of MVP Concepts Saves Life, Honored by Sacramento Fire Department

March 5, 2011 - PRLog -- How it Happened: In April 2010, Austin Smith was at the driving range during dusk. He saw a one-lane highway collision across the range. He noticed that not only was the truck still on the road, but the other vehicle had gone across traffic, up a 15-foot burn, and into a lake 50 feet below.

“I took off running, dropping my club, and dialed 911 as I ran,” Austin Smith said. “I told them the vicinity of the wreck and ran down to the water.”

What happened: When Austin got there, he saw that the truck was in three feet of water and John, the injured driver, was in convulsions, his foot still on the gas. Smith asked him who was important to him; the driver gave him a name, and Austin reached for the phone and told her what had happened. Smith then lifted his foot off the gas and that was digging him deeper into the water, took his keys out of the ignition, and threw them in the bed of the truck.

“For 45 minutes, I kept him conscious and no one knew where I was because of the location of the truck,” Smith said. “I kept talking to him until CareFlight came and the firemen helped put him on the stretcher to pull him on the embankment.”

The aftermath: After the man was put on the stretcher, Smith realized what had happened. “I give all the credit to my mother, who is a nurse practitioner,” he said. “Without her compassion and caring nature instilled in me, I may have never even ran to the scene.”

During February’s award ceremony with the Sacramento Metro Fire Department, Smith was presented with an award from Fire Chief Bill Sponable and the Board of Directors. He was honored in the presence of 50 Sacramento citizens and the staff of the Metro Fire Department.

“Leadership is an action, not a title. It’s something you do, not something you talk about,” Austin Smith said. “Real leaders step up in the face of adversity, look it in the eye, and tell it that it has no change of stopping me from what needs to be done, no matter what the measures.”

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