Rural Missouri - November 2021 - 4

RM | COOPERATION
Lifesavers on the lines
Employees honored for lifesaving roles
ecause electric co-op employees work in
remote areas and travel many miles doing
their jobs, it's not unusual for them to be
the first responders at accidents involving
the public. At its annual meeting in October, the
Association of Missouri Electric Cooperatives honored
six individuals for their lifesaving roles. Here
are their stories:
B
Nick Hinch, Three Rivers Electric Cooperative
Three Rivers Electric has a tradition that its linemen
gather for breakfast before the annual meeting.
Nick Hinch was part of the group that came
together for the 2021 breakfast on Aug. 6. While
they were eating at a local diner lineman Quentin
Starke choked on a piece of food. After realizing
Quentin was in trouble, Nick took action using the
Heimlich maneuver. After several attempts Quentin
cleared the obstruction and was able to breathe
again. The entire ordeal lasted a few minutes and
occurred without much fanfare or notoriety. Both
said they were grateful for the training they received
which allowed Nick to save Quentin's life.
Kurtis Brown, Southwest Electric Cooperative
On May 27, 2020, an armored truck crashed into
a large tree and caught fire. The impact with the
tree jammed the doors shut. The driver and passenger,
unable to open the doors and surrounded
by thick bulletproof glass, were trapped inside the
vehicle. urtis was returning to his office in reston
when he came upon the accident. He rushed to
his work truck and retrieved a hammer and a fire
extinguisher. The hammer had no effect on the bulletproof
windows. urtis used the fire etinguisher,
but the fire still burned out of control. e net used
his hammer to beat back the areas where the truck
body was jamming the door. As he worked his way
down the door, the men inside forced the door open.
ne of the rescued men, eslie owers, said, urtis
is a hero. He saved two lives that day. "
Hunter Ivie, SEMO Electric Cooperative
A southeast Missouri man had a real scare just
before Christmas 2020 when he choked on food.
The man told what happened in a text to a family
member that was shared with  lectric I
was ust finishing up when a bit of french fry got
caught in my throat and I ust started coughing
real hard to clear it out but it wouldn't clear. My
breathing got cut off and then I got scared and literally
could not breathe except a very minute bit.
I'd cough real hard and still couldn't breathe. " is
wife tried to help but her efforts failed. Then all of
4 RURAL MISSOURI | NOVEMBER 2021
a sudden, a guy in a parking spot a little way from
us saw what was happening and pulled over to us
and jumped out and asked, 'can you breathe?' and
I shook my head no. e umped behind me and put
his arms around me real tight and jerked hard but
it didn't do it. He did it two more times really hard
and finally, I started gradually breathing. is name
is unter Ivie, he works for  lectric and
can you believe this? He said they are trained to
know how to apply that procedure! That man saved
my life and God put him there just to do that very
thing I'm so thankful "
Johnnie Twyman and Andy Lawson,
Co-Mo Connect Electric Cooperative
On June 1, 2020, Johnnie Twyman and Andy Lawson
were traveling south to their lake office. As
they turned the corner on Highway 5, they noticed
a 3-year-old boy walking in the middle of the highway.
They acted immediately and pulled over on the
side of the road. In the northbound lane, a semitruck
came over the hill. As Andy stopped the vehicle,
Johnnie jumped out and immediately began
running to the little boy. The truck driver was able
to stop but only after leaving a trail of rubber on
the highway. The semi missed the boy by inches as
he slid by him. Johnnie swept the young boy up in
his arms and ran to the ditch. Then he walked the
child across the highway to his mother. The instinctive
actions of Johnnie and Andy certainly saved
the child's life.
Joe Cartwright, Crawford Electric Cooperative
Joe Cartwright and his wife, Amy, were watching
their oldest son participate at a rodeo. Joe noticed
his wife had jumped over the fence and was beginning
 on the pick-up man, who had eperienced
a heart attack. Joe ran to assist his wife,
who has nursing eperience, in performing .
Another lady oined them as they performed  in
a three-person rotation, using a manual air system.
EMTs eventually arrived with an AED unit and after
two shocks, the patient began breathing. The EMTs
called for helicopter transport and Joe organized
a small group to clear a landing area. The
patient survived the incident.
However due to multiple
issues, he passed away
about a month later. Joe
feels some consolation
that the actions of those
involved allowed extra time
for this individual to spend
with his family.
Rural Missouri - November 2021

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