A real-life superhero will be honored as a Utah man is set to receive a medal after saving a child from a submerged vehicle. Joe Donnell will be awarded the Carnegie Medal for his actions that led to the life-saving rescue of nine-year-old Paxton Knight, who was stranded in a submerged truck.
The Carnegie Medal, which is offered to individuals who display great acts of bravery and courage to risk their own lives to save others, will be given to Donnell. However, he is more proud that the life of young Paxton Knight will continue due to his daring actions on August 22, 2022.
Knight was found submerged in his family’s truck in the Morehouse Reservoir in Summit County, Utah. he had been underwater for ten minutes at that point, but Donnell did not give up hope. It took Donnell seven dives, according to KSL, to finally locate the boy and bring him to safety.
Donnell was proud that the honor would be bestowed upon him as he joined the ranks of the other 10,387 heroes who have received the award since its inception in 1904. But, to him, the greater victory is the successful recuse of Knight, which was further reported in the news report on KSL.
Donnell said, “I’m just glad (Knight) is alive. In my 25-year career as a ranger and emergency responder, I had a lot of people that didn’t survive more often than not, so it was really nice that he survived — and not only did he survive, but he has no long-term effects.”
Jewels Phraner is the communications director for the Carnegie Award. She spoke about the dangers of underwater rescues, saying, “We’ve been doing this for 120 years and we have awarded more than 10,000 Carnegie medals — we kind of become the expert on these risky situations. Every time you enter a sunken vehicle underwater, you really risk getting turned around and not being able to come back out, and he dove down so many times to save a little boy. … It was really an incredible rescue and we’re so honored to be able to recognize (Donnell).”
Donnell suffered only hypothermia from his extended time in the frigid water, a blessing that he attributes to God. He said, “When the incident went down, I wasn’t afraid at all. I just had a real sense of calmness about me. I didn’t panic, so I just think that was God putting me in the right place at the right time and giving me the skills and the courage to do it.”
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His Faith in God was rewarded, as millions of people are now hearing the story of his brave search and rescue, and Paxton Knight will be given a second opportunity at life. Furthermore, his actions may inspire others to choose to take action to save a life instead of being a bystander.
Donnell’s heroism is a great positive story that needs to be shared nowadays. Sure, things look dark and bleak at times, but good, selfless men still exist, and Donell is a perfect example of that.