ALEXANDRIA, Va. —The Truckload Carriers Association (TCA) has named truck driver Kerry Netusil, from Hawley, Penn., a TCA Highway Angel for extinguishing the flames of a pickup truck that was on fire on the side of the road.
Netusil drives for Bay & Bay Transportation out of Eagan, Minn.
From Trucker to Firefighter
At 12:25 p.m. on April 22, in Archdale, N.C., Netusil was passing an older model pickup truck on the shoulder on Highway 85. He noticed that the unit was on fire, and the driver had no way to extinguish the flames.
“I pulled over and ran back with my fire extinguisher,” Netusil said.
The fire caused extensive damage to the truck, and Netusil, who has been a truck driver for eight years, quickly worked to extinguish it. The driver sustained injuries from the fire, which was caused when he plugged in his cell phone.
“The guy’s truck was totaled,” Netusil said. “And he definitely burned part of his hand in the fire.”
Following Family Footsteps
Netusil’s grandfather and father were both firefighters and he never hesitated to stop to help the distressed driver.
“I don’t like the idea of people losing stuff because I didn’t feel like pulling over,” Netusil said. “It just doesn’t sit right with me.”
To read more stories about heroic truckers named as TCA Highway Angels, visit https://www.truckload.org/highway-angel/.
Dana Guthrie is an award-winning journalist who has been featured in multiple newspapers, books and magazines across the globe. She is currently based in the Atlanta, Georgia, area.
