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Firefighter reads to girl who just survived car crash: 'Sweetest thing ever!'
By Stephen Sorace
Published October 12, 2021
A Montana firefighter appeared in a viral photo sitting in the middle of a street and reading a book to a young girl who had just survived a car wreck.
First responders were called to the scene of a two-vehicle crash on Sept. 29 at around 8 p.m. in Billings, authorities said. While the cars sustained major damage, no injuries were reported.
Allie Marie Schmalz, a bystander at the accident scene, took the photo of a firefighter reading a book to comfort the young girl and posted it on Facebook.
"Sweetest thing ever!" Schmalz wrote. "This fireman is reading books to a little girl after being in an accident. First responders are amazing."
Fire officials identified the firefighter seen in the viral photo as 26-year-old Ryan Benton of Billings Engine 4, FOX Television Stations reported.
"Benton took it upon himself to read a story to the girl while her parents dealt with the accident," Billings Firefighters Media Coordinator Cameron Abell said in a statement to FOX Television Stations on Monday. "This allowed her to calm down and allowed the parents the ability to focus on getting some sense of normalcy back after a traumatic event like an accident."
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Abell said that Benton is one example of why the department is "extremely proud" of its people.
"As this photo shows, our people are the light on a cold scary night," Abell said. "They will be there for you when your darkest moment happens."
https://www.foxnews.com/us/firefighter-girl-car-crash-viral-photo