HERO Nurse Drives His Pickup Into The Fire To Rescue His Patients
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November 13, 2018
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November 13, 2018Allyn Pierce is a nurse in Paradise, California. He runs an Instagram for his adventures in his Toyota pickup truck.
Here it is before everything happened:
And here it is after…
“Here’s my @toyotausa commercial. This truck literally saved my life today. My little town of Paradise was literally burning down around me and @the_pandra got me to safety where I could help others…twice. #campfire #perfectmarshmellow #meltedplastics #buttecountyfire #sema2019 thanks to the fire fighters, law enforcement and my fellow healthcare workers for the work we all did getting the hospital evacuated and our patients to safety. 🤘🏼😔”
Holy CRAP.
Jack Nicas of the NYT has more details:
Here’s the crazy story of just one of the many heroes in Paradise, the town destroyed by California’s deadliest fire ever. His name is Allyn Pierce, and he’s the badass nurse who drove this truck through the flames. pic.twitter.com/xAL7zRf34H
— Jack Nicas (@jacknicas) November 13, 2018
Allyn manages the ICU at Paradise’s hospital, Adventist Health, and helped spark the quick evacuation of patients Thursday morning as the #CampFire swept in. Then he hopped in his truck with two colleagues and headed for safety.
— Jack Nicas (@jacknicas) November 13, 2018
Like many residents in Paradise, they quickly hit gridlock. But unfortunately for them, they were stuck in the middle of the fire. Flames licked at the side of his truck, and as Allyn watched other cars catch fire, he thought his was next. Here was his view. pic.twitter.com/2fACEWn4tu
— Jack Nicas (@jacknicas) November 13, 2018
Dear LORD this is horrifying…
And it gets worse:
Allyn held his coat against the window – a futile guard from the intense heat – and put on Peter Gabriel’s “In Your Eyes” to calm himself. He recorded a goodbye message to his family: “Just in case this doesn’t work out, I want you to know I really tried to make it out.”
— Jack Nicas (@jacknicas) November 13, 2018
Suddenly a bulldozer appeared & knocked a burning truck next to him out of the way. There was some room to maneuver. But instead of going forward toward safety, he turned around & drove back into the heart of Paradise. Here’s the aftermath of his Tacoma. (The lights still work.) pic.twitter.com/LLUU1fDfYv
— Jack Nicas (@jacknicas) November 13, 2018
Allyn ended up back at the hospital and quickly realized injured Paradise residents were also there, looking for medical help. “Now all of us are like, ‘Oh, this is what we do,’” he recalled. “We’re terrible at burning to death, but we’re amazing at taking care of people.”
— Jack Nicas (@jacknicas) November 13, 2018
Doctors, nurses, paramedics & police started a triage center in the hospital parking lot. They broke into the hospital for gurneys, oxygen tanks & other gear & quickly went to work, treating about two dozen people while the fire raged around them. Photo: Noah Berger/AP. pic.twitter.com/SOOZidkfOF
— Jack Nicas (@jacknicas) November 13, 2018
Wow… just WOW.
In times of tragedy, I am always amazed by the resilience of the human spirit.
Then the hospital caught fire. The team quickly relocated the patients 100 yards away to the hospital’s helipad. Eventually authorities cleared a path to safety, so they loaded up the victims & drove out in a caravan. Everyone made it out safely.
Photo: Jim Wilson/NYT @jwnyt pic.twitter.com/9aaX6c7HSc
— Jack Nicas (@jacknicas) November 13, 2018
Thank GOD.
Allyn stressed the triage was a massive group effort — and that they weren’t heroes. “This is what we do,” he said. “Any nurse, any healthcare worker, any cop, they were there and they all did their jobs.”
Allyn’s Instagram: https://t.co/GW2L2jS97w
— Jack Nicas (@jacknicas) November 13, 2018
Allyn has now lost everything. His truck, his HOME, and possibly his job. He’s humbly asking for help:
“I struggled posting this, but with my house gone and my hospital… I don’t know where my job sits. I’m gonna swallow my pride and post this GoFundMe that a kind person in Chico set up for us. This is the only legit GoFundMe that is set up for us. Seperately, there is a Plum Fund that has been set up by friends, “Pierce Family Fire Fund” . This is only for those that want to donate. We will be fine, it will all work out, because if has to. ”
But he’s gotten good news…
Some good news for Allyn: Looks like @Toyota is getting him a new truck. pic.twitter.com/r0gauofHuZ
— Jack Nicas (@jacknicas) November 13, 2018
That IS good news.
But wow… the people of Paradise are all in our prayers.
