For many people, their daily routine might consist of picking up breakfast or coffee while rushing to stay on schedule. For newly hired Transportation Security Inspector (TSI) Michael Hodges, his morning included helping save a life and still making it to class on time.
Mike and some fellow students were on their way to the Federal Law Enforcement Training Center (FLETC) in Brunswick, Georgia, when they saw a rider in front of them thrown from his motorcycle after colliding with a vehicle. TSI Kelly Hines said Mike took action quickly and “is a great example of heroism.”
After assessing the bike rider’s medical needs and applying a tourniquet to the man’s badly injured leg, Mike was able to brief police and paramedics. Despite Mike’s insistence that he did what “anyone would have done,” he was uniquely prepared to handle the situation.
Mike served as a master-at-arms and emergency medical technician with training in tactical combat casualty care. In Afghanistan, he received the majority of his trauma experience at the NATO Role III Trauma Hospital.
“When the accident happened, it took me right back to my time in Afghanistan where I saw and assisted with trauma injuries almost daily for nine months,” said Mike. “I immediately started thinking about what could be wrong and what injuries were likely. They teach you to run through a checklist, so I started running different scenarios through my head with different actions to take based on what injuries he might have sustained.”
Because of his actions, Mike’s class calls him “Action Mike,” a nickname that has been reinforced by Director of Global Compliance Craig Lynes, who personally thanked him for his quick response. “This heroic act helped save the individual’s leg and his life,” Lynes said. “Mr. Hodges’ willingness to jump in and respond is commendable.”
“When you are in the situation, you have all that adrenaline going, and you only have room to think about the injury and stabilizing the person,” said Mike. “I’m just glad I had the experience necessary to apply to the situation.”
