‘Fallen and can’t get up’ in real life: Rock Hill cops break down door to save woman
The old television commercial for a beeping medical alert, which featured a woman exclaiming, “I’ve fallen and can’t get up,” is familiar to many.
Tuesday in Rock Hill that happened in real life. Law enforcement officers kicked in a locked door to save a woman.
A nurse practitioner called Rock Hill Police Department officers around 8:15 a.m. to do a wellness check on an elderly female patient, police said. The nurse told officers she was outside the home, but could not get in to give the woman medical attention.
Patrol officers Steven Pearcy and Tanner Hyman arrived at the house, according to an incident report. The officers checked all the doors and windows but all were locked.
They could hear a medical alert device beeping, and the woman inside asking for someone to please help her, the report said.
“Officer Pearcy was then able to see through the blinds in a back bedroom, and could see an elderly female lying on the (floor) and could hear her calling out for help,” the incident report stated.
The officers called a shift supervisor, Sgt. Leland Harreslon, who gave them permission to break down the door because the woman was in imminent peril, the report said.
Pearcy kicked in the door and both officers rushed in to assist the woman. She told the officers who rescued her that “she had fallen and could not move.”
In December, Hyman was named Officer of the Month for his service to the public.
Rock Hill officers are trained to help the public any way that they can, and Tuesday’s actions were another example of that public service, said Rock Hill police Capt. Mark Bollinger.
In June of 2018, a shift of Rock Hill officers saved a man who was trying to commit suicide on Facebook Live.
The Herald is not identifying the woman who was helped by police. EMS arrived at the home after police breached the door and transported the woman for treatment, police said.
This story was originally published February 20, 2019 at 11:58 AM.
