By KIRBY ROSS
Phillips County Review
PHILLIPSBURG — We recently provided a report on the heroic actions of Phillips County Deputy Sheriff John Miner.
Miner was providing roadside assistance to seven stranded motorists traveling in two pickups in northwestern Phillips County on Nov. 4 when a semi collided into the vehicles.
Diesel spewing from ruptured fuel tanks ignited, resulting in a massive fire. Two toddlers, ages 2 and 4, were trapped in their carseats in one of the trucks. With bystanders hollering at him that he was on fire, Deputy Miner disregarded his own personal situation and at great peril of exploding gas tanks, ran into the carnage, cut one child out of her seat and carried her to safety, then returned, cut the other child loose, and carried him to safety.
Within seconds, that same vehicle was totally engulfed in a massive wall of flames and began being racked by explosions.
Deputy Miner and the children were transported to Phillips County Hospital, where the children checked out fine, and, with no physical injuries, were released to their parents.
However, Miner had suffered serious third-degree burns on his legs. After being transported to Via Christi Burn Center in Wichita, Miner underwent surgery for his injuries last Thursday.
Miner was released and returned home to Phillipsburg on Monday, where he is now recovering.
Phillips County Sheriff Charlie Radabaugh has cited Deputy Miner for extreme heroism, and has passed that citation on to the Kansas Sheriff’s Association for further recognition.
Said Sheriff Radabaugh, “Had John not been there those children would have been incinerated. It’s that simple, they wouldn’t have got out of the vehicle. The pickup was engulfed in flames less than a minute after he got them out. We’re amazed that this situation turned out the way it did. There are two children who are alive and well today because of Deputy Miner.”
As for Miner, upon his return to Phillipsburg he released a statement which we pass on to our readers below.
-------------
I'd like to take a minute to thank everyone for the thoughts and prayers over the last week.
I'm back at home and have a follow up appointment with the surgeon. They had to do skin grafts to fix my leg. Its obvious at this point its gonna take a while longer to heal than I was expecting. At first, I thought a week or maybe two but reality is setting in and it may take a bit longer. I can't wait to get cleared by the doctor so I can get back to work and pull my own weight again.
I'm thankful for the outcome of this event and the children didn't get hurt. Thanks Mikell Cummings for staying by my side through the hospital stay to help me stay positive and keep a smile on my face. I tried to get her to stay behind and go to Wichita alone but she wouldn't allow that and I'm grateful for the support.
I'll catch you all on the flip side. Keep your chin up and enjoy what there is to be thankful for while you can!
John Miner
Phillipsburg, KS
Republished with permission