UNION COUNTY, N.C. — An employee with Union County was recognized with the Lifesaver Award after he helped save a woman’s life in November.
Jason Belk, a water technician, was driving a county vehicle down Old Charlotte Highway on Nov. 8, 2022, in Monroe when he noticed something wasn’t right.
A woman was lying in front of a home off Seymour Street.
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“It was not normal to see someone lying in front of an abandoned house on the side street,” Belk said.
He made a U-turn and rushed to help the unconscious woman.
Belk flagged down Monroe firefighters who were driving by.
“At first I couldn’t believe it was all happening,” Belk said.
They gave the woman NARCAN, a drug used to reverse the effects of an overdose.
“They shot some of that NARCAN up her nose and she came back to,” Belk recalled.
County officials said Belk’s actions saved the woman’s life.
Belk said he couldn’t just drive by the unconscious woman, as many other drivers did.
“I’m a product of my raising,” he said. “Daddy was the same way. He couldn’t let somebody in trouble stay in trouble.”
Union County leaders surprised Belk at a staff meeting last month with the Lifesaver Award, which is reserved for employees who not only go above and beyond but whose actions directly save a life.
“It was a pretty good surprise,” Belk told Channel 9.
“My family was like, ‘Oh OK. You’re doing something other than just messing with the water,’” he said.
Belk says it took him a while to realize the full extent of what he did that day.
He could have stayed on his route but changed course, which would’ve changed the outcome for the woman.
“She could have died right there,” he said. “So, looking back on it now, my little action, went a long way.”
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