MELROSE, MASS. (WHDH) - Two Melrose police officers are being credited with saving the life of a boy who suffered a horrific leg injury on Tuesday night when he tried to jump a fence in an attempt to help a woman in distress, officials said.
Officers responding to a report of someone suffering from a leg injury at Winthrop Elementary School around 9:30 p.m. found a 14-year-old boy who had been impaled by the spikes at the top of a 4-foot fence, according to Melrose Police Chief Michael Lyle.
Fearing that one of the spikes may have hit his femoral artery, Officer Levi DiFranza and Sgt. Charles Byrne used a department-issued tourniquet to stop Jack Wright’s “significant” blood loss as they waited for the Melrose Fire Department to arrive at the scene.
Officer Alexander Barrancohe escorted Wright on an ambulance ride to Mass General Hospital. He is in good health and at home recovering from a torn thigh muscle.
Wright tried to hurdle the fence after he saw the woman trip and fall on the sidewalk, Wright said.
“I slipped and my left leg fell right on top of one of the spikes,” Wright recalled. “My leg…I couldn’t even feel it.”
Wright added that sitting in a “pool of blood” is what “freaked” him out the most.
Jack’s father, Christian Wright, said the officers’ actions undoubtedly saved his son’s life.
“When you know that and you’re kind of doing the math on how much time you have…That particular tourniquet that they used was fantastic,” he said. “We truly are blessed in Melrose. We really do have people who protect and serve here.”
Lyle said he is proud of the way DiFranza, Byrne, and Barrancohe handled the intense situation.
“They remained calm and focused during a very intense incident, and ultimately saved this young boy’s life and prevented a terrible tragedy,” Lyle said in a news release. “They are outstanding examples of the types of officers that make up the Melrose Police Department.”
The woman who fell is said to be doing OK.
(Copyright (c) 2024 Sunbeam Television. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)