Off-duty DC firefighter helps save woman trapped in car after horrific crash

An off-duty DC firefighter is being called a hero after helping to save the life of a woman who was stuck in side her car after it overturned in a crash in Prince George's County last week.

Firefighter Jeff Beach of Truck Company 11 was on his way home around 10:30 pm on May 9 when he came upon a very bad accident at Martin Luther King Highway and Lottsford Vista Road in Lanham, Md. One of the cars involved in the crash had overturned, and the woman behind the wheel was still stuck in the driver's seat.

Beach jumped into action, calling 911 immediately. While rescuers were on the way, he made sure that the driver of the second vehicle, who had been driving erratically, was removed safely from the scene. Then, he got inside the overturned vehicle to check on the woman who was trapped.

Once inside, Beach found that the woman had suffered a horrible injury. Her left arm had been partially amputated, and she was bleeding profusely.

Beach's training kicked in immediately. He took off his belt, and used it as a tourniquet to stop the bleeding from the woman's arm. Medics who arrived at the scene said it was that action that probably saved the woman's life.

When Prince George's County Fire and Rescue crews arrived, Beach briefed them on everything they needed to know. The woman in the overturned car had to be extricated, and was then flown to a trauma center by a Maryland State Police helicopter.

In a Facebook post, DC Fire and EMS said Beach's "skill, quick thinking and life-saving actions were in the finest traditions of our department." The story was also posted on the Kentland Volunteer Fire Department website.