This Montana firefighter appeared in a viral image that warmed the hearts of people from all over the world. The first responder is seen sitting in the middle of the street, reading a book to a young girl who was in a car accident.
The first responders were called to a scene due to a two-vehicle crash around 8 pm in Billings in September. The cars were severely damaged, but there were luckily no humans injured.
A bystander, Allie Marie Schmalz, took the viral photo and shared it on her Facebook.
She captioned it “sweetest thing ever! The fireman is reading books to a little girl after being in an accident. First responders are amazing.”
Helps Keep the Girl Calm while the Parents Are Resolving Things after the Accident
The firefighter is 26-year-old Ryan Benton from Billings Engine 4. He decided to read a story to the girl while the parents were dealing with the accident, according to the Media Coordinator of Billings Firefighters, Cameron Abell.
This helped calm down the girl and helped the parents focus on getting back to normality after a traumatic event. Abell notes that Benton is just one of the reasons why this department is so proud of its people.
As the image shows, these people are the light on a cold and scary night. These people are there for others in the darkest moments of life. Social media users were deeply moved by this selfless act of kindness.
Many people described the image as cool and awesome whereas others said that situations like this make them proud. Benton took the book from a donation bag by the Rimrock Credit Union and Usborne Books.
These book bags were introduced as means to bring calm into their lives and help reduce stress during tough situations.
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