Army football player Larry Pickett Jr. rescued a man from a burning vehicle early Sunday morning.
Pickett, a second-year cadet at the service academy, was traveling with his family when they saw a crashed vehicle surrounded by downed power lines on Route 9W in Fort Montgomery, New York, about five miles south of Army’s West Point campus.
The Fort Montgomery Fire Department reported Sunday that the vehicle had collided with a utility pole, causing the power lines to fall to the ground.
Videos posted by his family to social media show Pickett and his father lifting the unidentified man from the vehicle and carrying him safely away from the crash scene just moments before the vehicle burst into flames.
The U.S. Military Academy said Sunday in a social media post that it is ” proud of the heroic actions” taken by Pickett and his father.
Army athletic director Tom Theodorakis added that Pickett and his father “exemplify the values we hold dear, stepping up in a moment of crisis to save a life.”
Larry Pickett Sr. told multiple media outlets that the family was returning to West Point late Saturday night after going out to dinner in New York City. A redshirt freshman from Raleigh, North Carolina, the younger Pickett ran toward the vehicle as soon as he saw the crash scene.
“There was no discussion. My son just jumped right into action,” the elder Pickett told Raleigh-based ABC11. “He mentioned his military training kicked in, and we pulled [the man] out. He took care of him on the side of the road until the police officers got there, and then the fire department got there shortly after.”
Pickett had just made his college football debut on Friday night, recording a tackle in the Black Knights’ 30-27 overtime upset loss to FCS opponent Tarleton State.