The American Red Cross-Utah Region

Sergeant 1st Class Brady Johnson was honored on March 3rd, 2010 at our annual Heroes event. Read his inspiring story below and watch his interview from yesterday's live segment on KJZZ. It was pure luck that Sergeant First Class Brady Johnson was on his way up American Fork Canyon at the same time as a group of cyclists participating in the 1,000 Warriors bike race for wounded veterans. Brady, a trained medic for the National Guard, noticed a group of people gathered around an injured biker and soon heard someone call for help. Without hesitation, he grabbed his medic aid bag from the back of his car and saw a biker face down on the ground. That biker was Dave Collins from Mesa, Arizona. The sergeant, along with medically trained cyclists at the scene, rolled Dave over and realized the extent of his injuries. With the help of the trained riders, they opened his airway and Dave started breathing on his own. However, he was cut from his jugular to his sternum with two gaping holes in his neck. Brady grabbed bandages and gauze from his bag and packed the wounds, applying pressure to stop the bleeding. His Green Beret training taught him to maintain this pressure until an ambulance arrived. Brady does not know how long he did this. For him time was irrelevant. He had to do what he could until the paramedics arrived and that was all that mattered. Dave could have bled to death. Dave feels so blessed and fortunate that a number of qualified individuals on the scene were not only willing to stop and help but incredibly qualified to treat his wounds. Dave said, “It was literally a miracle that everyone knew what to do and how to handle the situation.” If all of those people had not been there at the exact time of the crash and without Brady’s medical supplies, this story might have a very different ending. He shared, “I am forever indebted to Brady and all of those who rendered help at the scene.