HALIFAX – A man who was first on the scene of a fatal car crash in Cole Harbour is brushing off comments calling him a hero.
Max Michalowski, 23, was driving southbound on 107 on Monday afternoon when he came upon cars pulled over to the side of the road. But he soon realized there had been a two vehicle crash and instantly ran out of the car to help.
Michalowski then ran to the other vehicle, which was being driven by a 51-year-old Porters Lake woman.
Get breaking National news
“I reached in to try and see if she would respond to the touch of my hand. I tried to speak to her. At that point, I realized there was nothing I could do for her.”
The female victim died at the scene.
Michalowski looked back to the truck where the male victim was still sitting.
“It started smoking. I didn’t know the integrity of the vehicle, what was going to happen next,” he said.
“The driver was still in there. He was a little bit in shock trying to get his seatbelt off and trying to get the airbag away from him.”
The truck doors were jammed shut because of the impact of the crash but Michalowski was finally able to get to the man, removed his seatbelt and pulled him out of the truck.
“I walked with him. I needed to get him away from the vehicle. I didn’t know if it was going to explode. I got him further away from the vehicle,” he said.
It was at that point that Michalowski says the man collapsed in his arms.
“Whether he was in shock, I didn’t know whether it was something to do with the heart or something like that. I lost him there for a second,” he said.
“He’s a tough guy. I grabbed him and put him on the ground as he was passing out.”
Bystanders brought a pillow and blanket over and Michalowski stayed with the man until the ambulance arrived.
The young man, who is in the military, says his training kicked in when he saw the accident and all he could think about was helping those involved.
“I wanted to help them. I wanted to get them out of the situation as quickly and as safely as I could,” he said.
“I don’t consider myself a hero. I think everybody that was at the scene was a hero.”
Halifax RCMP say the 72-year-old man remains in hospital with non-life threatening injuries.
Michalowski says that he hopes to one day reunite with the man, adding that he is at the man’s disposal if he ever needs anything.
“I never got to say anything after he got into the ambulance. I hope you’re doing alright.”
Comments
Want to discuss? Please read our Commenting Policy first.