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Right Place at the Right Time

Firefighter was on the Spot to Help Crash Victim after Stopping to Aid Motorist
“Sometimes I feel like God puts me in places He knows I need to be,” wrote Willow Spring Fire Chief Vance Farmer. His Facebook post was time-stamped 10:37 p.m. and revealed he was only then settling down to dinner because earlier in the evening he was busy with two back-to-back rescue events. 
Just before 6:00 p.m. on June 10, Chief Farmer was driving on Highway 181 in eastern Douglas County on his way to feed livestock for a friend. Near the Twin Bridges Fire Station, he was flagged down by a woman and a young girl who were stranded on the side of the road waving frantically and calling for help. They did not have a phone to call emergency services. 
Farmer pulled over to help them and saw the front brakes of their vehicle were on fire. He quickly retrieved a fire extinguisher from the nearby firehouse to put out the fire. In addition to being the Chief of the Willow Spring Fire Department, Farmer is also a volunteer with Twin Brides Fire. 
This good deed was not the only one that would require Farmer’s training and skill that evening.
“Literally 30 seconds later, a truck that was driving south towards the station lost control and flipped,” wrote Farmer. 
Farmer told Howell County News his initial reaction to this double emergency was “typical” for him. He sprang into action. 
“I knew I needed my rescue team as well as the ambulance and Air Evac. I was on the phone with 911 requesting those resources within seconds of the crash as I was visually sizing up the crash site as I was approaching it,” he said. “I...was able to get to the driver to help him really fast…”
Farmer requested medical services from Air Evac and guided the helicopter to land right on the highway. 
Twin Bridges firefighters, Howell County Ambulance, and Missouri State Highway Patrol’s Troop G also responded to the scene to assist Ronald Sobanek, 27, of Douglass, Kan. Sobanek’s injuries were serious enough to warrant rescue via helicopter. He was transported to a Springfield hospital for treatment. 
According to reports from Troop G, Sobanek was placed under arrest at the scene for misdemeanor driving while intoxicated, no seatbelt, and failure to maintain the right half of the roadway. Due to his injuries, Sobanek was immediately released for medical treatment. 
In his post describing the incidents, Farmer reflected, “[Two] totally separate incidents right on my path, way out in Douglas County where response times are held up by being so far in the rural area....and I had a phone and radio that reached out! God certainly put me on that path for a reason. It's why I do this work.”

Howell County News

110 W. Main St.,
Willow Springs, MO 65793
417-252-2123

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