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CAMP HUMPHREYS, South Korea – An act of heroism by definition is an act of great bravery or courage. People who display heroism are said to deserve much praise and appreciation. A firefighter rescues a daughter from a burning building. A bomb dog detects a bomb and prevents the loss of many lives. A Soldier saves a man from being hit by a speeding train. If all of these events are the definition of being heroic, then a Soldier from the 2nd Combat Aviation Brigade could be considered a true hero.
Cpl. Tristan L. Booth, a native of Maple Valley, Washington, and the senior cable system installer/maintainer from the Headquarters and Headquarters Company, 2nd CAB, rescued a man who had fallen onto a train track May 3 at the AK Plaza in Pyeongtaek, South Korea.
The weekend was coming to a close much like many other weekends before it with Booth saying goodbye to his at the time fianceé, Juran Hyun, as she headed back to Seoul on the subway. The couple was sitting on a bench waiting when Booth overheard a Korean civilian making strange noises and acting as if he was drunk. Booth payed him no attention at the time and he and his wife moved to a different bench do to the amount of people moving into the area.
“A few minutes after we moved I heard a loud bang and saw everyone moving to the edge of the platform and looking down toward the tracks,” Booth said. “Once we got to the crowd I could see a man lying face up on top of the track.”
He quickly reacted and jumped down along with a civilian to try and help the man who had fallen. It took them two or three attempts to lift the heavy man to the top of the platform before they could get themselves out of harm’s way.
“I didn’t know if a train was going to come or not,” he said. “I am still in shock that I jumped down there.”
Once they were safe on top of the platform, Booth noticed a severe laceration on the man’s head. Booth remembered he had a t-shirt inside of his backpack and rushed to retrieve it. He began applying pressure to the wound and started to make sure the man was not going into shock.
“My basic knowledge of combat lifesaver first aid helped me remember what to do instantly,” Booth said. “My deployment to Afghanistan gave me experiences with situations where I need to react quickly which really helped me.”
Booth stayed with the man and comforted Hyun until paramedics arrived to the scene. After the situation was over, many Korean civilians thanked Booth for helping save the man.
Master Sgt. Bryan Vann, the noncommissioned officer in charge of the 2nd CAB communications section, is one of Booth’s mentors in the Army.
“He is a person with high character who wants to constantly be a better person and Soldier,” Vann said. “He likes to take care of other people and I’m not surprised he did this.”
Booth was presented with an Army Commendation Medal on Aug. 5 for his efforts to save the man’s life.
“We wanted to make sure we did our due diligence and recognize him for this wonderful deed he performed,” Vann said. “Most people don’t want to go out of their way to help someone, but he went out of his way because he is selfless.”
Booth said if this were ever to happen to him again he would not hesitate to jump back onto those tracks despite how terrifying it was. He said he does not think he is a hero, but the hundreds of witnesses on the crowded platform who watched him stay true to the Army values and save a man’s life might feel differently.
| Date Taken: | 08.12.2015 |
| Date Posted: | 08.11.2015 23:43 |
| Story ID: | 172868 |
| Location: | PYEONGTAEK, 41, KR |
| Hometown: | MAPLE VALLEY, WA, US |
| Web Views: | 2,415 |
| Downloads: | 3 |
This work, 2nd CAB Soldier saves life, by SGT Jesse Smith, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
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