Divine intervention. That's how Austin Fire Department firefighter Justin LaPree described encountering Lake Travis Fire Rescue Lieutenant Chris Wood on a Lakeway street on March 14, moments after a small plane crashed.
The two worked to pull the pilot and his passenger out of the mangled aircraft.
Though the passenger, Kevin Henderson, died, Wood and LaPree are credited with saving local resident Scott Nelson's life. The three men reunited Friday in Nelson's home.
"I used to be a man who thought coincidences happen, but I have changed that thought process and believe Chris and I were totally here on the same route at that time for a specific reason," LaPree said. "I totally think there was divine intervention (that) play(ed) a huge hand in this. Two off-duty firefighters who had known each other for a few months at that time, both Marines, traveling a road at the same time that have the skills to intervene in this type of rescue situation—I don't call that a coincidence at all."
Although the firefighters had visited Nelson in his hospital and rehabilitation facility, last week's meeting marked the first time Nelson heard the details of the accident. Nelson, who was in and out of consciousness at the crash scene, said he doesn't remember the event except for a few seconds when he saw Wood and LaPree helping him.
"It was definitely meant to be," Nelson said. "It's a miracle that two firefighters showed up as two of the first people on the scene. I have a hard time processing how lucky and fortunate I am to know these guys."
On March 14, Wood had just finished playing a round of golf when he was flagged down on Lakeway Boulevard by a frantic woman waving her arms wildly in the middle of the street. The off-duty officer spotted a downed single-engine Cessna 172 and attempted to pull out its two passengers amid engine fuel spewing in the cockpit.
"I knew it was going to be bad," Wood said of what he thought he would find when he looked inside the remains of the plane. Due to the nature of the crash, the fuel broke off the plane's wing and was dumping onto the victims inside, pilot Nelson and student Henderson, he said.
"When I went in, the plane was pretty much crushed up like a crushed Pepsi can," Wood said. "Both guys were hurt pretty bad, but fuel was the main problem. They were going to asphyxiate or drown in the fuel, so I decided to pull them out."
After working at the scene for a few minutes, Wood was surprised when someone tapped his leg and said, "Hey, I'm here for you, brother." Wood was about to yell for the person to get back when he noticed it was LaPree, a firefighter who lives in his building.
LaPree was in the area to pick up his 19-month-old daughter from preschool, with another child in tow. He said he heard a loud commotion, and traffic stopped immediately.
"I just had this gut feeling that something bad had happened," LaPree said.
He cut through traffic and pulled onto the median where he saw the crashed plane in a ditch. With his truck running, LaPree jumped out and rushed to the wreckage.
"Everything just went into reaction mode," LaPree said. "I didn't really think about anything. You could tell by the severity of the scene that seconds were going to make a difference."
He found a police officer and asked him to watch the truck that housed his son, not worrying about picking up his daughter on time.
"We just started to triage and take care of their airways from there until a battalion chief arrived with Lake Travis (Fire Rescue)," Wood said. "He gave us a medical bag, and we started suctioning their airways and started doing our thing, just like we were on duty at that point.".
Moving together, Wood and LaPree pulled Nelson and Henderson out of the wreckage, leading the way for the crewmen to be transported to emergency centers. Henderson died from his injuries at the hospital. Nelson spent weeks in the hospital and in rehabilitation.
"It's part of my job as an officer with Lake Travis (Fire Rescue) to handle critical incidents and to manage them," Wood said. "But when you leave a fire station, the call pops up on a mobile data computer and you have four or five minutes to get your game plan, tell your guys what you're looking for, tell them what's happening. When it happens right in front of you, it's a whole different deal."
In a work situation, the firefighters would never have entered a "hot zone like that with that much fuel and hazmat" without the proper gear," he said.
"But at this point, it was life or death, so both of us decided to pull (Nelson and Henderson) out and render aid," Wood said.
Other first responders arrived to help with the accident site while onlookers prayed .
Wood, a 16-year Lakeway resident and 18-year firefighter, said his former home was only a block away from the accident. He recently relocated from the area.
The incident was the third or fourth plane crash Wood said he has attended to but the first for LaPree, a three-year firefighter. However, the traumatic scene of Nelson's plane crash is still difficult for Wood to get over.
"I've been through a bunch of critical incidents, but this one kind of made an impact and probably will stay with me for the rest of my life, whether good or bad," Wood said. "It's just a part of me now."
All three men acknowledged the event has bonded them.
"I know I've done it before but I have to thank you guys again," Nelson told LaPree and Wood. "I just want you to know how important it is to me. I love you guys."
In removing Nelson's clothing to treat him at the scene, Wood said he accidentally cut off a chain with a cross Nelson was wearing around his neck. Nelson asked Wood about the missing jewelry when he visited him in the hospital, but the chain and cross were gone.
Shortly thereafter, Nelson's wife purchased three chains and crosses identical to the one her husband lost in the accident. But this time the gifts were also for LaPree and Wood.
"We're all going to wear the same cross for the rest of our lives," Wood said. "So I think that kind of makes us brothers in arms."
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