This photo is the results of a night full of bad judgments and sore points. On the night of 3-27-92 The operator of this front end loader was told by his supervisor to use it to cross the flooding Las Vegas Wash. They both knew a pick up would not make it threw the raging flood water. What they didn’t know was that the entire road had washed out. It was a very dark night and all though I could hear the operator calling for help I could not see him. I Tried to notify our supervisor by both his cell phone and company radio in the hope that he might be able to see him from his side he did not answer my calls. So I notified Metro and was informed by the 911 operator that they could not get a helicopter up in this bad weather. She kept asking me questions I could not answer I am afraid that out of frustration I lost my cool and. Told her “Lady at this point I’ll take a ultra light with a flash light we can’t see the man.” She stopped talking to me so I handed the phone off to the other security guard.
I then cross in to the flood waters with a D9L caterpillar bull dozer. There was a small patch of dry land between the stranded operator and my security post . I’d hoped to be able to see him with the machines lights from that vantage point. I have been a operator my self and also suffered under the delusion the massive machine could make it. The flooding water was deep and rushed up over the deck plates and in to the cab of the 9L. I was really starting to think I was about to join the helpless operator in a similar predicament . When the tracks found solid ground and clattered there way up the other side on to the small Island.
I could see the operator now he was clinging to the top of the loaders cab. Rushing flood water threatening to wash him away. I could even see the supervisor on the fare bank yelling and waving his arms for me to take the dozer back. Hell I thought to my self I wouldn’t have brought it out if he’d have just answered my calls. It’s a small thing to harp on hear but this little web page is my only vindication for the criticisms I’ve endured for my attempts to help a drowning man.
Las Vegas Metro search and rescue helicopter showed up and plucked that operator off the cad of his sunken machine like the well triad crew that they are. Only having him by the wrist they set him right down on my little island just as quickly. The pilot asked if I could get him the rest of the way over. I took one look at all the cop cars fire trucks and news vans and had to tell him no. Honest that currents was strong I hand no way of knowing were we’d come out and what the dozer would smash in its path. It hade nothing to do with my first ever Helicopter ride. And I did tell that pilot only if he could get all toughs people out of the way first.
The news broadcast were not kind reporting a foolish operator and a security guard Amazing how people posse when they say Security It’s like there filling in Dumb old Security Guard in their minds. had to be rescued from the flood waters. One of the reasons I was in know big hurry to make the news after the big shoot out that very same night. Know sooner had things combed down and I was back to the business of watching trucks grow. And a shot rang out it came from the other side of the flooded out road from about were the operator had been invisible to us on this side. I thought oh grate some mal content is shooting the widows out of the sunken loader or wares the bull dozer I’d left on that little peas of high ground in favor of a helicopter ride back to the far side. “Hay” I foolishly yelled as I walked out in to the road there’s people over hear. I heard a splash, later I figured it was the dead body that turned up down stream. At the time I had no clue why they opened up on me. At least one had a small caliber automatic and the other a pistol probably a 9MM . Rounds pecked the road tree branches and just wised threw the air around me. I dove for cover behind a pile of dirt and drew my 357 mag I pumped a couple of rounds in to the bank of the new cut river. I wasn’t about to just fire blindly in to the dark I’d had smart asses shoot at me before. Something about seeing the security guard namely me diving for cover turns their cranks I gues. I did wont them to know I was armed though so they would not attempt to sneak up on me wile I waited for the cops. Who I was dialing with one hand even wile capping off warning rounds with the other.
They continued to fire I dared not shoot back it’d be my luck to hit one of the machines. Then the other guards dog that had to be left with me so he could hale the drowned rat of a operator all the way out and around the long waymany miles to the main yard. The animal decided this was a new game and being trained not to fear gun fire danced beside my hiding place. Hear he is looky looky hear he is I found him. I was getting desperate now and fired two more warning rounds in to the bank then tried to club the damn dog with the barrel my gun. He easily danced out of my reach so I relocated no shots ensued as I scrambled in to a newer bigger hole one that could accommodate both me and the dancing dog. Police sirens sounded in the distance and the bad guys fled
That next day their were so many people criticizing my actions with the dozer. I didn’t want to bring up the two guys that tried to off me. None of the machinery got hit and I didn’t learn of the dead body until that next night. The police knew and until now that’s been good enough.
