Service before self; crew members assist families in car crash

  • Published
  • By Airman 1st Class Emerald Ralston
  • 341st Space Wing Public Affairs Office
MALMSTROM AIR FORCE BASE, Mont. --  Members of a team coming back from a missile alert facility Jan. 27 were involved in bringing cheer, warmth and comfort to two families in two vehicles that were involved in car accidents. 

Two separate vehicles were thrown off the side of the road into a ditch outside the town of Geyser, Mont., due to wind gusts and slippery road conditions. 

Upon seeing the vehicles and the group of people standing outside in the snow, the team, consisting of Capt. Rhett Sigmon, 10th Missile Squadron combat crew deputy, 1st Lt. James Martin, combat crew deputy commander, 2nd Lt. John Early, 10th MS deputy combat crew member, Staff Sgt. Garry Swanson, 10th MS facility manager and Staff Sgt. Charles Savage, 10th MS senior chief, pulled over and got out to see what they could do to help. 

"We were coming back from a 96-hour alert at Delta MAF and we were all pretty tired," Captain Sigmon said. "We were all ready to get back, especially one of our crew members who only had one day between two 96-hour alerts." 

But that didn't stop them from taking action when they saw a family in need. 

"We were on the road and weather conditions were pretty bad," Captain Sigmon said. "You usually see people on the side of the road but their car is usually working and they seem to have called for help already. When Sergeant Swanson spotted these two cars in the ditch, we decided to stop. There was a group of people standing outside in the snow, and even though the temperature wasn't too bad, the wind made it seem pretty bad." 

As soon as they realized what happened, the crew took action. Due to the lack of cell-phone service in the area, Sergeant Swanson radioed the missile maintenance operations center to have them notify highway patrol, he said. 

The two vehicles had been blown off the road by the wind. The first vehicle, a mini-van contained a family with small children. After they got out of the car, another vehicle blew off the road and slammed into the first, breaking out the windows in both vehicles. 

"No one was injured really, except the little kids had some cuts from the glass breaking on their faces," Lieutenant Early said. "We took some of our water and cleaned off their faces, but no first aid really needed to be applied at the scene." 

Along with treating the minor injuries, the crew also made sure the families were as comfortable as possible until help arrived, by letting the mother and children sit in their warm vehicle, and providing the men and the older kids coats and supplies from their cold weather gear. 

"Two of the individuals involved were high school students and they didn't seem to want to take the coats or the help at first, but after being out in the cold for a little while, they accepted our help," Captain Sigmon said. 

Their help certainly didn't go unappreciated, as one of the men involved called the 10th MS commander to express his gratitude, and also wrote a letter to the editor of the Great Falls Tribune. 

"The father was really grateful for what we did, you could tell in his voice" Captain Sigmon said. "For some reason he had the idea no one would stop. But we were the first military vehicle that passed and we stopped. There were a few others that drove by, we just happened to be the first ones on the scene. They were a family in need and I think any crew members would have stopped and done the same thing. We're here to serve the community, not ourselves." 

After standing in the snow with the individuals involved for more than 30 minutes, a county sheriff arrived, followed by an ambulance, and the crew helped transport the family back to Geyser before turning back and heading home. 

"After it was all over and you remember the look of gratitude on the faces of the people you helped, it's just something you get to carry with you from then on," Sergeant Swanson said. 

To sum up the day's events and the feelings of the crew, Captain Sigmon quoted Abraham Lincoln saying, "When I do good, I feel good - when I do bad, I feel bad."