Alabama officers are calling 10-year-old Christopher Wheeler a hero after his quick-thinking saved lives last Thursday.
Wheeler was in the car with his 70-year-old neighbor, Alfred Smith, when the elderly gentleman started suffering from a diabetic episode. (It's the same reason a truck driver in Nebraska swerved off the road before a deputy saved him.)
"He got sick and he was swerving across the road," Wheeler recalled to Alabama's WSFA. "He started getting sweaty and said he needed a piece of candy."
Special Agent Eric Salvador witnessed as the car began dangerously driving between three lanes. He began chasing the car and unsuccessfully tried to stop the driver.
Despite being terrified, the young boy managed to press on the brake and pull the vehicle over. Salvador caught up to the vehicle, followed by Senior Trooper Lee Walls, and both were stunned by Wheeler's instincts, which saved Smith's life and his own.
"Without the heroism of that child, I think they would have crashed off the road or into another vehicle. I think he saved a lot of lives out there," Salvador said. "I've been in law enforcement eight years and I've never seen anything like this."
The Alabama Law Enforcement Agency shared a photo of Special Agent Salvador posing with Wheeler and Trooper Walls along with an explanation of the unbelievable ordeal on Facebook.
The picture, shown below, was shared more than 13,000 times in less than a week.
"Today around noon, an Investigator with the Attorney General's Office observed a vehicle weaving excessively on I-65 near exit 181. The Investigator attempted to stop the vehicle which failed to yield. An Alabama State Trooper assisted and the vehicle eventually stopped on AL 14 near Browns Road. The Investigator and Trooper determined that the driver was suffering from a diabetic episode. It was discovered that a 10-year-old child passenger had steered the vehicle to safety and applied the brakes to stop the vehicle," reads the Facebook post from March 24.
"The child's actions may have saved the driver's life, his own life, and the lives of others on the road at the time. The Trooper gave the driver some food as emergency personnel arrived on scene. The driver was transported to a local hospital. The Trooper took the child, who was hungry, to a local fast food restaurant for a meal as they waited for family members to arrive. Millbrook Police and Fire Rescue assisted with the incident. Great job to all involved!"
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