Ottawa — A Kansas mother is praising a neighbor as “Superman” after her 6-year-old daughter told her he somehow found the strength to lift a car off her.
The girl escaped with minor injuries after she and neighbor Nick Harris said she was pinned under the vehicle.
“He really is Superman,” Kristen Hough, the child’s mother, said Friday of Harris, the man she said saved her daughter, Ashlyn.
Harris, 32, said he doesn’t know how he managed to lift the Mercury sedan off the child. The 5-foot-7, 185-pound Harris said he tried later that day to lift other cars and couldn’t.
“But somehow, adrenaline, hand of God, whatever you want to call it; I don’t know how I did it,” he said.
Harris was dropping off his 8-year-old daughter at school last week when he saw a driver backing her car out of a driveway and over the child, Harris said.
“I didn’t even think. I ran over there as fast as I could, grabbed the rear end of the car and lifted and pushed as hard as I could to get the tire off the child,” he said.
He realized the little girl was Ashlyn, a friend of his daughter’s.
Harris carried the screaming first-grader to the sidewalk and was going to get his phone to call 911, but Ashlyn said she wanted him to stay with her.
He told people nearby to get the child’s mother, who lives a block away.
There were no witnesses to confirm what happened. But Ottawa police Lt. Adam Weingartner said, “I don’t have anything to dispute it.”
Hough said Ashlyn told her Harris lifted the car off her, Weingartner said.
Weingartner, the first officer at the scene, said Harris “was amped up pretty good. The first words out of his mouth were, ‘I lifted the car off the girl.”’
He said it appeared Ashlyn wasn’t pinned under the car long enough to be seriously hurt, Weingartner said.
Hough said her daughter was released from the hospital that afternoon with a concussion and some scrapes.
“She is my little walking miracle right now,” Hough said. “He truly is a superhero in the family’s eyes.”
Harris also visited Ashlyn later that day and was greeted with a big hug.
“I don’t consider myself a hero at all,” Harris said. “To me, it was payment enough when she gave me that huge hug and said, ‘Thanks, Superman.”’
Comments
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thepianoman (anonymous) says…
Way to go superman! WOW. Amazing. A true hero you are!
diplomacy205 (anonymous) says…
One family got an early Christmas present. Way to go!!
middlemgmt (anonymous) says…
Great Story! Way to go Mr. Harris! I'm glad it had a happy ending!
defenestrator (anonymous) says…
Just amazing!
jackpot (anonymous) says…
Saw him on the news last night. Said he has tried to lift the car again three or four times but could not lift it.
Parrysmom (anonymous) says…
That is absolutely awesome! I'm glad he was there to help her.
thewayne (anonymous) says…
Great story, yeah. Thanks Superman
75x55 (anonymous) says…
You wouldn't like him when he's angry.....
autie (anonymous) says…
That is pretty cool. Adrenaline can be your friend.
mommaeffortx2 (anonymous) says…
no that was the hulk. I love happy endings.
bevy (anonymous) says…
Wish they would tell us whether the girl is o.k. Perhaps that's implied. Guess you never know what you can do until you try! That's amazing.
Pywacket (anonymous) says…
Bevy~ It says she escaped with minor injuries. (Did they add that after your post?)
Ottawa Superman rocks!
This comment was removed by the site staff for violation of the usage agreement.
edson443 (anonymous) says…
What an amazing day to be able to thank a real Superman!
Thank you Superman!
OutlawJHawk (anonymous) says…
What happened to the driver of the car? Was she cited?
misplacedcheesehead (anonymous) says…
Thank you, Mr. Harris, for caring enough to get involved!
Now I know why my 11 yr. old "Rainman" loves Superman so much.
bmaestas (Brad Maestas) says…
Great story. Glad to hear she wasn't seriously hurt. I'm with OutlawJHawk. Was the driver held accountable in any way?
RadarC (anonymous) says…
I heard that the driver will not be getting a citation.
dadof3 (anonymous) says…
Mr Harris is a true hero! Way to go. If not for you I am sure the outcome would have been very different.
Scattered (anonymous) says…
A beautiful Christmastime miracle!!!!
redmoonrising (anonymous) says…
What a great story with a great outcome.
BigPrune (anonymous) says…
What a great story. I already forwarded the story to Drudge :)
I hope the hero didn't sustain any internal injuries which happens sometimes in these kinds of cases.
merrill (anonymous) says…
What happened to the person who ran over the child?
BigPrune (anonymous) says…
They have nightmares, feel guilty, are reluctant to drive again - who knows? Should someone be brought up on charges because they backed over a kid?