David G. Jackson attempted to save Jerry L. Duncan from a falling sheet of metal, Gordonsville, Tennessee, March 31, 1977. While working in a vertical shaft still under construction, Duncan, 26, stepped into a partially-enclosed compartment just as a sheet of corrugated steel suspended 1,100 feet above him broke from its cable. Jackson, 19, driller, was at the same level in the shaft and heard the sheet of metal falling inside the compartment. He extended his arms and lunged toward Duncan to push him out of the way. Just as Jackson made contact with Duncan, the falling sheet struck both men. Duncan lost one arm. Both of Jackson’s arms were severed, but they were surgically replaced.
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