After experiencing a stunning blizzard, the United States now salutes the courage of several of its fellow citizens who saved residents trapped in the blizzard, US media reports.
“Heroic”
Jay Withey, 27, was particularly praised for his bravery by police in Cheektowaga, New York, who were able to watch his exploits on CCTV cameras. He would have saved a dozen people.
“I feel 100% that Jay’s actions were heroic and 100% saved lives,” Cheektowaga Police Chief Brian Gould said.
He had launched a witness call on social media to find this man in order to thank him, according to ABC.
“People freeze to death in their cars”
Jay Whitney is trapped in his truck on December 23 due to a snowstorm in Buffalo, New York. “You hear people freeze to death in their cars, it was a really scary moment,” he says, watching the snow pile up on his vehicle.
Locked out by bad weather, he has to spend the night in his van, accompanied by a “scared and cold” woman. They both take turns staying up all night to keep the engine running continuously and the heater on.
But the essence is running out. Therefore, Jay Whitney goes to a nearby school, breaks a window to get in and collects water and food from the cafeteria, but also blankets from the infirmary.
“I had to do it to save everyone”
Instead of staying in the shelter, he decides to come to the aid of those trapped in the blizzard, as the cold continues to intensify. “I saw that there were other cars blocked near the school so I told them to go back to the school and that there is heating there,” he told AFP ABC.
“I thought we were going to die. It was scary, but seeing him and Jay taking us to school really saved us,” recalls Sabrina Andino, one of the motorists caught in the storm.
The young man even left a handwritten note at the school apologizing for entering the establishment. “I’m so sorry I broke a window and got into the kitchen… I had to do it to save everyone and keep you all safe,” he wrote.
She saves a mentally disabled man
Another Buffalo resident shown saving a resident from the cold is Sha’Kyra Aughtry, 35, reports the New York Post. She is now nicknamed “Angel of Buffalo.”
On December 24, as snow fell hard, the 30-year-old heard her screaming for help from her home. She goes outside to see who’s calling and discovers Joe White, a 64-year-old man with mental retardation, suffering from severe frostbite. She quickly takes him home to warm him up by offering him blankets and feeding him food.
She also uses a hair dryer to melt the accumulated gel on her hands and removes the rings that have become painful with scissors, while her fingers have become swollen from the cold. He even launches a Facebook live to ask netizens for advice on how to help the frozen man.
Taken to the hospital, Joe White was treated in the burn unit, his vital prognosis is not compromised. At least 61 people died from the consequences of the snowstorm in the United States.
Source: BFM TV
