Local 888 leader Robert Keeler, a security officer at Barnes Air National Guard Base, wasn’t on duty — but he sprang into action when he came upon an injured man while out shopping in Wilbraham. For starters, he called 911 and questioned the man.
“I knew something wasn’t right,” Keeler told the 104th Fighter Wing’s public affairs office. “I didn’t know exactly what it could have been. He had a lot of blood on his face but it was dried. Then when I saw the wound on his leg, I knew it was pretty serious.”
“He had a gash probably about eight inches on the inside of his leg and knee and I could tell he had lost a lot of blood,” said Keeler, who has worked for the 104th Fighter Wing, based at Barnes in Westfield, for 15 years.
Keeler then pitched in to help the injured man after a Wilbraham police officer arrived on the scene. “I got out, identified myself as law enforcement and said that I could help him.”
Keeler then pitched in to help the injured man after a Wilbraham police officer arrived on the scene. “I got out, identified myself as law enforcement and said that I could help him, so he gave me gloves and gauze and I … helped him staunch the wounds until the ambulance got there,” said Keeler.
"Officer Keeler is one of our most experienced members in the entire unit and his lifesaving response … is not only a credit to himself as a professional at the 104th, but as a person." said Master Sgt. Shane Coakley, Keeler's day shift flight chief.
Keeler said that the training he has received working at Barnes has helped prepare him to respond in situations like this.
“People who haven’t had this kind of training maybe would have panicked and drove away, maybe not called 911 and the outcome could have been different for him,” said Keeler. “I didn’t panic.”
He added that, given his job at Barnes, “you’re kind of always on duty 24/7. So I was just at the right place at the right time. I don’t feel like I did anything special. I helped when I needed to and that’s it.”
For more on the story, see https://www.dvidshub.net/news/401515/104th-fighter-wing-officer-remains-calm-helps-injured-local.