KINGSTOWN, R.I. — The winds were calm as paratroopers from across the world jumped from helicopters during an international parachute competition known as Leapfest.
‘One minute,’ ‘thirty seconds,’ and ‘go,’ were the last words that Cpl. Hugues Leveille heard before he leaped from the Chinook helicopter, relying solely on his parachute and paratrooper skills to guide him safely to the landing zone. Leveille is a French Canadian from Quebec City, Quebec.
On his approach to the landing zone, Leveille realized he was in grave danger of getting caught in a U.S. soldier’s parachute. He tried his hardest to avoid the mid-air collision, but it was simply too late to steer away. The American soldier was only a few feet from landing; however, Leveille was approximately seven feet overhead and tangled in the U.S. trooper’s parachute. Once Leveille became entangled, his hope for a soft landing was botched. Tangled and out of control, he plummeted to the ground, landing on his knees and elbows instead of his feet. The American soon realized that Leveille had been hurt and instead of rushing to the finish line alone, he rushed to the aid of his fellow paratrooper, the French Canadian. The U.S. soldier, who wished to remain anonymous, tried to pull Leveille to the finish line so they could complete the competition together. However, he quickly realized that Leveille was too badly injured to be moved. Leveille could not move, nor could he breathe. The American suspected that Leveille had received a spinal injury so he then proceeded to stabilize Leveille to prevent any further damage.
The medics arrived on scene promptly and escorted Corporal Leveille to the hospital where he received treatment for his injuries. Leveille was only in the hospital for three hours. He was discharged with cracked ribs and a chest wall strain. Leveille was then released back to light duty. Later that night at the awards banquet and closing ceremony, Cpl. Leveille met up with his American counterpart. They spoke about the day’s activities.
Leveille said “It’s pretty nice that he didn’t go to the X, he stayed with me instead. It’s nice that international soldiers and American Army thinks like us. You help your boys and then later you finish your job”. The soldiers’ Creed of the United States Army says “I will never leave a fallen comrade.” One of the army values is “Selfless Service” the American soldier that stayed by the Canadian’s side exhibited these traits ever so humbly.
“It’s a competition, and everyone is there to win, but this American wasn’t there merely to win. He [the American soldier] demonstrated his good values,” said Leveille.
Corporal Leveille is with the 3rd Battalion, Royal 22nd Regiment (The Vandoos) in Quebec, Canada
| Date Taken: | 08.07.2012 |
| Date Posted: | 08.30.2012 12:02 |
| Story ID: | 94037 |
| Location: | RI, US |
| Web Views: | 66 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
This work, Parachute competition builds international camaraderie, by Stephen Wright, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
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