A man in Lewiston, Idaho who saved the life of a man whose SUV was hovering over a 30-foot cliff potentially might have remained anonymous, but his identity has been revealed due to a photograph that was taken in the midst of the dramatic rescue.
The heroism came about after 23-year-old Mathew Sitko was involved in a crash where his SUV veered off the road, after apparently attempting to commit suicide. Police later said that Sitko had dropped off siblings at school and was driving when lyrics in a song he was listening to gave him the urge to kill himself. At that point, he apparently closed his eyes, removed his hands from the steering wheel and hit the accelerator on the SUV.
In that precarious position, the driver’s side was hanging over the edge, making the rescue that much harder. Soon after it happened, 29-year-old Jason Warnock came about the scene while riding on his way to work on the road below.
Warnock had to run up the 200-foot hill, before then pleading with Sitko to open up the passenger side window. Once Warnock carefully removed Sitko from the vehicle, the two hugged in thanks and talked about the Bible. Warnock then humbly saying that he just happened to be in the right place at the right time.
Sitko was treated for minor injuries, but by the time the media arrived, Warnock had left the scene. His given reason was that he didn’t want to be late for work.