Drive-Thru Danger; How a U.S. Marine Corps drill instructor saved a man's life at McDonald's.
Somebody's Trapped in There!
As a U.S. marine corps drill instructor, Jamie Nicholson had a tough-as-leather scowl and a cannon-like voice that could drain the color right out of the faces of his new recruits. Whether driving his platoon on a 12-mile hike with 45-pound packs or ordering them to plunge fully dressed from a tower into water ten feet below, he pushed the young soldiers ceaselessly. As Marines he taught them to act decisively and effectively, even in the midst of chaos.
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By Lynn Rosellini
From Reader's DigestOctober 2006
Rushing through some early errands before work one morning, Nicholson pulled into the McDonald's fast-food restaurant on Balboa Avenue in San Diego. He was dirty, hungry and sleep-deprived. The staff sergeant, 28 and single, had been up half the night at a remote outpost with his platoon. In a few hours, he would help lead the recruits through the Crucible -- their final, grueling 48-hour endurance test before graduation.
Nicholson was due back at Camp Pendleton by 11 a.m. And since he was wearing his camouflage utility uniform, Marine Corps regulations prohibited him from entering a public building. No matter, he thought. The drive-thru will be faster.
"A large black coffee and an Egg McMuffin," he said into the speaker.
"Just a minute, sir," said a woman's voice. A split-second later she shrieked, "Oh, my God!" Then there was screaming -- and the intercom went silent.
Nicholson thought maybe there had been an accident inside. But when a McDonald's employee ran out the back door and disappeared around the corner, Nicholson pulled forward to get a better look. Up ahead, he could see a silver Ford Focus rammed into the side of the restaurant. The driver's door was ajar. Wait a minute, he thought. Somebody's trapped in there!
A few moments earlier, a customer had dropped his change out the window. When the 20-year-old man opened the car door to pick up his money, his foot slipped off the brake. The Ford rolled into a pillar, and the door closed on his neck.
Nicholson jumped out of his car and tried to climb into the Ford, but the doors were locked. He could see the driver's face, caught between his door and the frame. It was purple. The motor was in gear, revving.
Although he was trained in first-responder skills, Nicholson had never confronted a situation like this. Thinking fast, he decided to try to smash the rear passenger window -- the one farthest from the driver. He rammed with his elbow, then kicked it hard with the heel of his combat boot. But he couldn't break the tempered glass.
Desperate, he grabbed a tire iron from his trunk and bashed the window, sending shards spraying across the seats. He unlocked the door and jumped inside.
The engine was idling fast, which could mean only one thing: The driver's foot was pressing down the gas pedal. To free the man's head, Nicholson needed to shift the car into reverse. But there was no telling how much pressure was on the accelerator. If the vehicle shot backward, it could hit a brick wall or the Dumpster 15 feet behind. Nicholson could be crushed; the driver would be dragged.
Still, he had to take a chance. He climbed into the backseat, kneeling gingerly on the broken glass that covered the upholstery. Reaching awkwardly over the front seats, he strained to reach the gearshift. When he finally managed to grab hold of it, he carefully put the car in reverse. The Ford jumped back a few feet. Then Nicholson shifted to park, and the car jolted to a stop.
Fearing that the driver might have sustained a spinal injury, he carefully lifted the man's lifeless body onto the front seat. His pulse was weak, his breathing shallow. Nicholson gave him a sternum rub, which is commonly used to revive the unconscious. The man blinked his eyes and murmured something.
Rescue workers arrived minutes later and took the driver, Fabio Abud Barretto, to a local hospital. After the ambulance left, Nicholson got his coffee. But he was no longer hungry.
He never saw the victim again, although McDonald's employees reported that he was back at the restaurant a few days later. Authorities are certain that if Nicholson hadn't stepped in, the young man probably would have died. "It was an outstanding effort by this Marine to save a life," said Maurice Luque, a spokesman for San Diego Fire-Rescue.
Nicholson, a veteran of the war in Iraq, downplays his role. "He was just another person who needed help," he said, adding that Marines' lifesaving skills aren't just reserved for the few and the proud.
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