Two TSA officers from Rhinelander-Oneida County Airport are heroes after stopping to help the victim of a traffic crash in the Northwoods of Wisconsin.
Around 4:40 a.m., TSA officer Stacey Becker was driving to the airport in slick, snowy conditions on Highway 8. Supervisory TSA officer Rob Hermanson, who was also on his way to work, was about a mile behind her.
Becker saw a car make a right turn in front of her. It looked to her like the driver turned into a driveway. But when Becker drove by the vehicle, she noticed it actually slid off the road into a ditch and was lying upside down on its roof, apparently after hitting a snowbank.
Becker immediately turned her car around and called 911, describing the vehicle and its exact location.
Meanwhile, Hermanson stopped to help along with other passing motorists. Hermanson and Becker assessed the driver’s condition and relayed information to others who were speaking directly with a 911 dispatcher.
A man who stopped to help kicked out the window of the overturned car and pulled the motorist out.
Before paramedics and firefighters arrived, Hermanson helped get the crash victim into a warm, running car, staying with the injured man until the situation was under control. Emergency personnel arrived and took the man to a local hospital.
“The immediate actions taken by both Stacy and Rob are both admirable and heroic as they assisted this stranger in a time of need,” said Federal Security Director Mark Lendvay.