Military Veteran Samuel De Los Santos sufferers from Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), yet was able to overcome some of his greatest fears to aid two San Antonio police officers at the scene of a horrific car crash.
It was on September 17th that 22-year old, Aaron Beaugard, was out for a ride on his motorcycle near Wiseman Boulevard and Loop 1604 when the unthinkable happened. A horrible accident with a pick-up truck severed both of Beaugard’s legs and he began to bleed to death while lying in the street.
“I heard a loud bang. I didn’t see the accident but I heard it, and as I looked to the right, I saw the victim’s motorcycle just shattering,” remembers De Los Santos.
The veteran was afraid to approach and view the scene of the accident to render aid but knew it was something he had to do.
“Something in me triggered and I knew I had to go down there. I have to see what’s going on. And I looked down, and I see his legs lying there by his side. So I run down and put the tourniquet on,” he said.
As De Los Santos applied life saving measures to the victim, he looked up to see that two Police Officers were on the scene to help. San Antonio Police Officer, Oscar Torres, and Alamo College Police Officer, Mary Ramirez, both looked at De Los Santos with fear and shock in their eyes as they began to provide assistance.
“We made eye contact, and it was like, ‘This is happening.’ But that was it. We didn’t speak to each other. It was just like, ‘Do what you have to do,'” Ramirez said.
And all three of these heroes did exactly what they had to do and they did it well. Beaugard’s life was saved and he is currently learning to live as a double amputee. His father and step-mother are proud of his progress and are so grateful to those officers who were there to help their son.
“He’s doing great, he has a great attitude, a great spirit and he’s healing fast,” said his father, Reginald Beaugard.
The Beaugard family was in attendance at the San Antonio police headquarters to witness Officer Torres, Officer Ramirez and De Los Santos receive awards for their quick thinking and heroic actions. De Los Santos says that giving back, with the help of the officers, changed more than the life of Aaron Beaugard.
“I told them he really helped me out, too, with my PTSD, because having to deal with that situation made me have to face it. So in a way, he helped me,” De Los Santos said.
(source: ksat.com)