Combat Medic Rescues Boy On Grand Lake When Leg Severs, Says He's No Hero

A man credited with saving the life of a 16-year-old boy when part of the teen's leg was severed by a boat prop says he just did what needed to be done.

He was in the right place at the right time when the accident happened at Dripping Springs on Grand Lake on the Fourth of July.

Andy Billups loves going to the lake. He lives in Edmond, but has been visiting Grand Lake for 35 years.

His visit this past Fourth of July is one he will never forget.

7/8/2014 Related Story: First Responders Save Green Country Teen Who Lost Part Of His Leg In Boating Accident

"I heard a bunch of kids making a lot of noise,” Billups said. “I really couldn't understand what they were saying, but then I could understand ‘call 911,’ and I could hear the fear in this young man's voice."

Billups, who was relaxing in a hammock at a friend’s lake house, decided to see what was wrong.

"I could obviously see he was missing his right leg, from about 3 inches below the right knee," he said.

Billups has experience as a firefighter. And as a civilian contractor, he worked as a combat zone firefighter in Iraq from 2005 to 2009.

He has combat medic training so Billups immediately found a rope, using it as a tourniquet to stop the 16 year old from bleeding to death.

"His friends were absolutely hysterical,” Billups said. “I told them, ‘Hey, fellas. You've got to calm down and help me get him on the dock.’ And they helped me, they did a very good job doing that."

The teen was flown to a hospital in Joplin and later to Kansas City.

Billups says his training just kicked in when it was needed,

"It was like I was back overseas again,” Billups said. “I knew exactly what to do. There wasn't really any hesitation. We'd been trained in this over and over and over. We'd seen that kind of trauma over and over and over."

GRDA police and volunteer firefighters say there's no doubt Billups' quick and calm action saved the boy’s life.

"I just happened to be the guy that was there, and knew what to do and I'm really glad it turned out how it did,” he said.

Billups hopes what happened on Grand Lake reinforces how important it is to take safety seriously, especially for young people and during busy holiday weekends.