Robert D. Lesslie - Angels to the Rescue: Inspirational Real-Life Stories from an ER Doctor

Angels in the ER

Angels on Call

Angels and Heroes

Angels on the Night Shift

Miracles in the ER

Notes from a Doctors Pocket

60 Ways to Lower Your Cholesterol

60 Ways to Lower Your Blood Pressure

60 Ways to Lose 10 Pounds (or More)

Everybody has a story. Give them a chance, and theyll tell you.

W ere going to need something to sedate the guy back in Minor Trauma A. Lori dropped the mans chart to the countertop and walked behind the nurses station to wash her hands. Something strong.

Willie Childers? Amy asked. The twenty-year-old Officer Jones just brought in?

Yes. Lori shook her head and dried her hands. He was completely calm when we took him to the back. I was wondering why Elton kept the mans cuffs on and why the other highway patrolman kept a hand on his shoulder. Im glad they were there though, cause when I asked him to get up on the stretcher, he exploded. Started kicking and screaming. It was all we could do to get him on the stretcher and on his back. If he does that again, hes going to hurt himself or someone else.

So thats the ruckus we heard down the hallway, I observed. Thought it was a party or something going on.

It was a party, all right. Lori straightened her shirt and walked around the counter. A PCP party, by the looks of it. Elton and his partner responded to a car in a ditch out on the interstate and found this guy sitting on the bank, staring at the moon. He had a couple of outbursts with them, but they managed to get him cuffed and into the patrol car. Now hes our problemuntil we can get him medically cleared.

Well, lets go see if we can do that.

I grabbed the clipboard of Minor Trauma A and headed down the hallway.

Elton Jones and his partner flanked the stretcher in the left-rear corner of the room. A young man was lying there shirtless with his eyes closed.

What you got here, Elton? I asked quietly, not wanting to startle the moon-staring young man.

I stood beside the highway patrolman, and my eyes were drawn to his always impeccable and neatly pressed uniform. The top two buttons of his long-sleeved shirt were gone, and his right shirtsleeve was ripped to the elbow, its tattered edges dangling from his forearm.

He looked at me and then at his torn sleeve. He shifted his body and moved his arm out of my view, but I had seen themthe burn scars that began at his wrist, encircled his forearm, and disappeared above his elbow.

Lori had been right. PCP was indeed the culprit in Minor Trauma and the cause of the young mans bizarre behavior. Actually the culprit was his bad decision making. The PCP was just an instrument.

Think well be able to take him to the jail this evening?

Elton stood beside me at the nurses station, making some notes on his report ledger.

Were waiting on a couple of things to come back from the lab, I told him. But hes calming down and should be stable enough. What kind of charges do you have on him?

Well, for one thing, he was driving under the influence. Im just glad he didnt run into someone, because for the second thing, he was driving south on I-77 in the northbound lane.

What? My head spun around and I stared at the patrolman. He was driving on the wrong side of the interstate?

Elton nodded his head and sighed. Not the first time thats happened.

He glanced down at his right forearm and looked at the burn scar.

Its happened before.

This is 911 Dispatch. We have reports of a vehicle speeding on I-77.

Elton Jones cocked his head and listened. He was on Highway 21, not far from the interstate. But this sounded like a routine call, something the local police or county sheriffs deputies could handle.

And the vehicle is heading south in a northbound lane.

Elton glanced in his rearview mirror, slammed on his breaks, and executed a quick and smooth U-turn. This was something different. A disaster waiting to happen.

He flipped on his lights and siren and headed toward the interstate.

You sure you dont want me to drive?

Gracie Lyon was in the front passenger seat, trying to stay awake. It was midnight, and she and her friend had been on the road for three hours, headed home to Michigan from a week at Myrtle Beach.

Youre kidding, right? Heather Anderson glanced at her friend and smiled. You can barely keep your eyes open. Go back to sleep.

No, really. Gracies persistence was halfhearted. I can drive if you want. She yawned again and closed her eyes.

The two were roommates at Michigan Statefriends since grade school. Carefree and sunburned, they planned to stop for the night on the other side of Charlotte, about 45 minutes away.

Heather shifted in her seat, adjusted the rearview mirror, and watched mile marker 65 speed by.

Elton was on the radio, asking if there were any other patrol cars in the area. There was a bad wreck on Highway 5the other side of the countyand most of the sheriffs deputies were already on the scene or on the way.

Nobody answered his request for help.

How do I stop this guy before he kills someone?

Elton was almost on the interstate. Depending on the speed of the vehicle, the driver could be anywhere between three and ten miles up the roadheaded his way. Or maybe he had figured out he was in the wrong lane and turned around. Not likely. It was after midnight, and the chances of alcohol or another intoxicant being involved were pretty high.

He took the exit onto I-77 and was immediately thankful. Scant traffic, with only a few moving lights visible in both directions.

Think, man. How am I going to do this?

With help from other police and highway patrolmen, a plan could quickly be put together blocking traffic heading north and isolating the wayward driver. But could Elton find the help?

He passed a pickup truck, its driver nodding and waving as the officer sped by.

Elton slowed and motioned for the driver to pull over.

Every minute mattered, and Elton didnt get out of the patrol car but pulled alongside the stopped truck.

Youre fine, he told the confused driver. Weve got a problem up ahead, and I need you to pull over and stay here until I come back. Got it?

The man nodded and pulled onto the shoulder.

Elton sped off, searching the road ahead for other taillights. Clear.

Elton, whats going on?

The voice on the radio was faint and scratchy, but still recognizable as Chad Stevens, another patrolman on duty in the county.

Where are you, Chad?

Highway 9, between Chester and the interstate. You need some help?

Elton told him what was happening, and they put together a hasty plan.

Chad was to drive north on the interstate, pick a spot beyond one of the big interchanges, and stop traffic at that point. He had some flares and reflective cones, but it would still be risky. Elton would keep heading north, locate the driver, and get him or her to pull off the roadhe hoped.

This is 911 Dispatch. We just had another report of the same vehicle still heading south in a northbound lane. Weaving in the road and nearly running a trucker off the highway.

We need to hurry, Chad said. In the radios background, Elton heard the first wail of the patrolmans siren. Good luck.

Good luck? Ill need more than that.

So much for the driver realizing his error and turning around.

A couple of mile markers passed by in a blur, yet Elton could see no other taillights on the road. And no headlights coming his way. Not yet. He tried to remember his training but couldnt come up with a plan that had even a small chance of stopping this guy. There arent many options when it comes to a one-on-one challenge like this. He had to get the guy off the road, but how? Once he saw the car, he could turn around, catch up with him, and force him off the road. Risky, especially if there were other cars coming. Chad could block the interstate but not the entrances. And all it would take would be one vehicle getting through to create a potential disaster.