Last Day On Patrol, I Got A Victim Under My Car

We heard the emergency alarm. At 443 Yorkshire Avenue, a child was home alone, unaware of a gas leak that had started a fire.

The situation was urgent. Neighbors called 119, reporting the child had been rendered unconscious by the smoke.

My team was the only one available, so we immediately drove to the scene of the fire.

On our way, an old man collapsed in front of the fire truck. Worried he might be ill, I got out to check on him.

No sooner had I stepped out, the old man began groaning loudly, pointing at me and yelling, "Ouch! It's you! Were you rushing to your death driving that fast? Oh, it hurts so much."

It dawned on me that this was a setup.

Seeing he could still shout so vigorously, I was sure he was fine, so I decided to have my team bypass him and prioritize the fire.

Unexpectedly, the old man grabbed me, insisting, "Don’t think you can leave without paying!"

I looked around. We were in the old town, devoid of surveillance cameras, and onlookers had already started to gather.

"Alright, Sir, how much do you want?" I asked helplessly.

After all, saving lives from the fire was crucial, and I didn't want to argue over a small amount.

Learning his trick work, the old man glanced at the fire truck filled with my men and demanded, "Two hundred thousand. You have twenty people on your truck, ten thousand per person. That's not too much, is it?"

His demand was outrageous, but I didn’t want to prolong the dispute, so I got back on the truck planning to leave.

However, he clung to my leg, crying loudly, "Oh, he’s about to hit and run! And he’s a firefighter too, oh my.”

"Is there no sense left? A firefighter hits someone and tries to run?"

His cries attracted a crowd. They surrounded the fire truck, recording videos and chattering.

"A firefighter with no morals! Tsk, the world is going downhill."

"Poor old man! Is there no justice left?"

"Record this, and post it online. Let’s see if he can still be a firefighter."

With each comment from the crowd, the old man grew more confident, a glint of triumph in his eyes. "With so many eyewitnesses here, you won’t get away."

Another call from headquarters came in, reporting the fire had escalated from a medium to a large one. The child was nearly engulfed in flames.

Seeing me answer the phone, the old man sensed my urgency and quickly said, "Don’t let him go! He’s trying to run!"

Powerlessly, I explained to the onlookers, "There’s a fire, and we need to go save lives. Please, can you make way? We’re running out of time!"

The old man frantically looked around. "Just because they're firefighters doesn’t mean they can bully an old man like me. Folks, can you bear to let them walk all over me?"

I thought since I had mentioned going to save people from a fire, the crowd would let us through, but hearing about a staff member bullying an innocent old man, their emotions flared up.

People pointed at me, their faces full of sympathy for the old man, continuously cursing me.

I had no choice but to call the police to help clear the path so we could proceed to the fire.

The old man followed the police to the station, and before leaving, he pretended to be scared of me. "Officer, you aren’t going to collude with the firefighters and deny me justice, are you?"