With all the nonsense going on with our political leaders, we need some good-ole American hero stories, and this fits the bill.
A retired U.S. Navy captain and his son, a U.S. Marine, put their lives on the line when they jumped into kayaks and moved across a frozen creek to save the life of a pilot who had crashed into the ice a day after Christmas.
“It’s kind of a blessing on Christmas to be able to help someone like that,” retired U.S. Navy captain John Gelinne told the press. He went on to say that he thought the situation could have ended very badly.
Gelinne explained how he and his son saw a plane coming straight for his family home in Anne Arundel County, Maryland. At the last minute, it banked to the left and crashed into Beards Creek nearby on the morning of December 26.
The retired U.S. Navy captain and his son immediately used kayaks to go across an icy creek and rescue the pilot’
The Maryland State Police reported witnesses saying they heard the engine sputter after taking off from nearby Lee Airport in Edgewater, Maryland.
Another video captured the pilot, Steve Couchman – 71, screaming for help after the crash. The Gelinas called 911 and then jumped into heroic action.
“We knew he was in trouble, and so we ran out to the patio and we saw the plane go down and ditch into the creek. I knew that there was a man overboard portside,” Gelinne recalled. “What do we need to do to get this individual out of the water as quickly as possible?”
The family kept two kayaks under the patio of their deck and the two men just went on instinct and went for the water. They used shovels instead of paddles to deal with the ice. Couchman was standing on the wing of the sinking plane when the Gelinnes were able to reach him, according to the press release.
“I asked him to release from the plane, the tail, that’s all that was left for him to grab to, and got it and yanked him onto the kayak,” Gelinne said.
Emergency teams then arrived with boats and brought the pilot to shore. The pilot is in the hospital with non-life-threatening injuries thanks to the quick thinking of our military father and son.
Watch:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qSc2rnCI-O4
