Catching the action

So often we hear that news camera operators are out to get the “blood and guts” stories. We hear the term “if it bleeds, it leads.” Very often they are on scene to capture the action and get as much of the story as possible through the images that can be shared.

Stepping away from the camera

WDTN photographer Don Hatcher was recently awarded the Urbana Citizen Life Saving Award. He had arrived on the scene of a serious car crash on January 18, 2008. When he arrived, he had the opportunity to catch all the action as it unfolded. However, he realized that a man was in very serious danger. He put down his camera and entered the vehicle to attempt to do everything that he could for the man. Urbana firefighters say that his actions and that of a UPS driver helped to save the life of Denny Howell.

Urbana Daily Citizen report

The Urbana Daily Citizen reported the crash from January 18, 2008. Breanne Parcels wrote:

Hatcher said he was on his way back to work in Springfield from lunch at his home on Woodburn Road when he heard about the crash on the emergency-band scanner in his vehicle.

“I turned around and I knew I would probably beat the medics,” he said. “When I got there I saw a bunch of people milling around and one guy tried to stop me when he saw the camera, but I put it down and said, ‘that guy needs help.’”

Hatcher said he’s no stranger to accident scenes, so he knew what to do to keep Howell stabilized and prevent further internal injuries until an ambulance arrived.

“He was in pretty bad shape,” Hatcher said. “He was choking and I tried to hold him still so he wouldn’t hurt his back until the paramedics were able to suction him, and there was a lot of blood when they inserted the breathing tube. He never did come to.”

Source: Urbana Daily Citizen

Video of the award presentation