SPRINGFIELD, Ill. (WAND) — An officer with the Springfield Police Department was presented with one of the department's highest honors Thursday.
Officer Matthew Torres was given the Life Saving award and Mayor's Certificate of Honor due to his actions that helped save a man's life in July.
According to the department, Torres responded to an accident near the intersection of South Wirt Avenue and East Stuart Avenue after reports of a vehicle hitting the railroad tracks, causing a man to be ejected from the vehicle.
When he arrived, Torres found Willie D. Crawford lying on the ground. Torres saw his pant leg was torn, and Crawford was bleeding with bone protruding through the fabric.
Torres applied a tourniquet which slowed the bleeding while medics were on the way. Crawford was taken to the hospital, where he was treated and stabilized.
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