Actions

Greenfield officer, Good Samaritan help driver passed out in moving dump truck

Posted at 7:06 PM, May 18, 2018
and last updated 2018-05-20 11:47:38-04

Dashcam video captured a Greenfield police officer's quick action to help save a man who had passed out while driving a dump truck. 

Officer James Enters says he was on patrol near Loomis Road and Layton Avenue when he saw the massive truck, with what appeared to be no driver behind the wheel. 

"I'm trying to figure out how I'm going to stop this potentially 70,000-pound dump truck," he said. 

He says he first saw the truck take out a telephone pole before veering off to the right. It went through a restaurant parking lot, smashed through a wooden fence and then finally came to a rest against a curb on 43rd Street. 

Enters says a Good Samaritan had jumped in the passenger side and turned off the ignition and Enters then activated the air brake system to keep the truck from moving. 

They found the driver seizing and unresponsive. Enters says he tried to prevent the man from injuring himself or activating any controls on the truck. 

"He doesn't recall anything happening, he doesn't recall the crash at all actually," said Enters. 

Greenfield Fire arrived shortly after and took the driver to the hospital. He's expected to be OK. 

"We receive training in different maneuvers and techniques to try and stop vehicles," said Enters. "It all goes out the window when you have a dump truck. I think it was a blessing that it ended the way it did." 

Watch the full dash cam footage here: