Several Buffalo residents have shown their courage in rescuing people trapped in the blizzard. A massive snowstorm hit the United States last week.
After experiencing an impressive snowstorm, the United States now salutes the courage of several of its fellow citizens who saved residents caught in the blizzard, report American media.
“Heroic”
The bravery of 27-year-old Jay Withey was particularly praised by the police in Cheektowaga, New York, who were able to observe his exploits through CCTV cameras. He would have saved a dozen people.
“I feel 100% that Jay’s actions were heroic and 100% saved lives,” Cheektowaga Police Chief Brian Gould said.
He had launched a call for witnesses on social networks to find this man in order to thank him, according to ABC.
“People are freezing to death in their cars”
Jay Whitney finds himself stuck in his truck on December 23 due to a snowstorm that hits Buffalo, New York. “You hear people freezing to death in their cars, it was a really scary moment,” he says, as he watches snow pile up on his vehicle.
Blocked by bad weather, he has to spend the night in his truck, joined by a “scared and cold” woman. Both take turns staying awake all night to keep the engine running continuously and the heater on.
But the essence is running out. Jay Whitney therefore goes to a nearby school, breaks a window to get in and collects water and food from the cafeteria, but also blankets from the infirmary.
“I had to do it to save everyone”
Rather than stay in the shelter, he decides to come to the aid of those caught in the blizzard, as the cold continues to intensify. “I saw that there were other cars blocked near the school so I told them to go back to the establishment and that there is heating there,” he told AFP. ABC.
“I thought we were going to die. It was scary, but seeing Jay and him taking us to school really saved us,” recalls Sabrina Andino, one of the motorists stuck in the storm.
The young man even left a handwritten note at school to apologize for entering the establishment. “I’m so sorry I broke a window and walked into the kitchen…I had to do it to save everyone and get them to safety,” he wrote.
She saves a mentally handicapped man
Another Buffalo resident has shown herself by saving a resident from the cold, it is Sha’Kyra Aughtry, 35, reports the New York Post. She is now nicknamed “Buffalo’s Angel”.
On December 24, as the snow fell heavily, the 30-year-old heard her cry for help from her home. She goes out to see who’s calling and discovers a mentally retarded 64-year-old, Joe White, suffering from severe frostbite. She quickly takes him home to warm him up by offering him blankets and giving him food.
She also uses a hair dryer to melt the gel accumulated on her hands and removes her rings that have become painful with shears, while her fingers have swollen with the cold. She even launches live on Facebook to ask Internet users for advice on how to help the frozen man.
Taken to the hospital, Joe White was taken care of in the burns unit, his vital prognosis is not engaged. At least 61 people died from the consequences of the snowstorm in the United States.
