Off-duty fireman freed hurt driver
 
By Ellie Oleson
Telegram & Gazette

AUBURN, Mass. — William J. Chicoine, 57, of 11 Allen Ave., Oxford, does not recall breaking 15 bones in his face and five bones in his back.

He does remember driving on Interstate 290 on his way to Marlboro to take his 90-year-old mother to lunch Aug. 14.

"The next thing I remember is waking up in intensive care. I don't remember the crash or rolling over or the fire," he said yesterday. "It is only thanks to Aaron Reed that I'm alive."

Last night, selectmen honored Auburn Firefighter Paramedic Aaron D. Reed, 32, for his heroism in rescuing Mr. Chicoine.

Mr. Reed was off duty, driving down Southbridge Street in Worcester that morning on his way to take his cat, Rose, to the veterinarian. When he came around a corner by a grassy hill near the College Square exit of I-290, he saw a green Jeep Cherokee lying upside down on the grass. Flames were coming from the engine.

"I jumped over a barbed wire fence and kicked in the back window. I wouldn't suggest doing either wearing shorts, as I was. I could see a man in there, upside down and unconscious, bleeding profusely," Mr. Reed said.

He crawled in the back window, through the broken glass, ignoring the many cuts to his legs and arms, until his reached Mr. Chicoine. The unconscious man's weight strained the seat belt, making it impossible to release.

"I crawled into the front seat under him to lift his weight off the seat belt, so I could release it," Mr. Reed said.

Once he did release the seat belt, Mr. Chicoine's full weight fell on him, pinning the firefighter to the seat. Blood made Mr. Chicoine's motionless body slippery and nearly impossible to move. Flames from the engine had lit the grass around the vehicle, and the fire was spreading in the car.

"That was the first time I thought I might not get out. It was strange. Time slowed down, and I thought it was odd that I was supposed to be taking my cat to the vet and instead I would die in this car with this man I didn't know," Mr. Reed said.

Somehow he managed to wriggle out from under Mr. Chicoine and drag him out through the back window to the grass.

Even then, the danger was not over, since the car was fully engulfed by then and the fire in the grass was spreading.

"Some other people came down to help me drag him up the hill, away from the fire," Mr. Reed said.

Once he was at a fairly safe distance from the burning car, Mr. Reed went from firefighter to paramedic.

"I didn't have any equipment, but I scooped the blood out of his mouth so he could breathe and tried to keep his airway clear until Worcester EMS arrived and treated him. It's a miracle we are both alive," Mr. Reed said.

He estimated that the entire rescue took only about three minutes, though it seemed far longer.

"If I had stopped at a stop light or picked up a cup of coffee, I'd have been too late," Mr. Reed said.

Preliminary reports showed that the Jeep had been going eastbound on Interstate 290 in the center lane when it suddenly crossed into the left lane, then across all three lanes before striking the guardrail. The Jeep continued along the guardrail until it went over the railing and into the embankment next to the bridge at the College Square/Federal Square exit (Exit 11).

Mr. Chicoine was hospitalized for four days before being sent home to recover. His eyes remain bloodshot and his face bruised. He walks slowly with shaky steps and is in pain from his broken ribs, face and back. But he is alive.

He said yesterday that he has no idea how to thank Mr. Reed for saving his life. "What can I say? That young man has more guts than anyone I know. He's my hero."

Mr. Reed is also a hero to Mr. Chicoine's son, William D. Chicoine of Webster, and daughter, Lori M. Clark of Millbury, and four grandchildren, who all accompanied the senior Mr. Chicoine to the selectmen's meeting last night, so they could meet Mr. Reed.

"My kids understand and are so grateful. My grandchildren know Papa's been hurt, but they don't understand how close I came to never seeing them again, if it hadn't been for that young man," Mr. Chicoine said.

He was disabled 13 years ago, after an accident that injured his back at the Sweet Life Foods plant in Marlboro, where he was a supervisor.

Despite his disability and his more recent injuries, Mr. Chicoine, leaning on a cane, attended last night's selectmen's meeting, where he shook hands with Mr. Reed.

Fire Chief William A. Whynot presented Mr. Reed with a certificate of valor "for actions taken beyond the call of duty and at great personal risk."

"None of us knows if we'd do what he did. He saw what needed to be done and did it. I'm very proud of him," Chief Whynot added.

Elizabeth L. Prouty, chairwoman of the Board of Selectmen, read a proclamation given by the board to Mr. Reed "to commend his courage and bravery."

Also present was Mr. Reed's mother, Diane L. Reed of Fitchburg. "We're so proud of him. He leaves me breathless," she said.

Mr. Chicoine smiled, despite all the broken bones in his face. "I wouldn't have missed this for the world," he said. "It's a miracle that he was there and he had the guts to do what he did. It's a miracle I'm alive."

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