James Callahan

James Callahan saved five children from a runaway van, Watauga, Texas, June 16, 2009. Five children, ranging in age from 2 to 10, were secured to their seats in a minivan that was parked and left running in front of a store. The vehicle began to roll backward toward a busy, six-lane highway. Callahan, 48, car dealer, was in the store and saw the minivan moving backward. He immediately ran from the store and approached the driver’s side of the vehicle. He opened the driver’s door and placed his right leg and foot inside the minivan to apply the brake, but he became caught by the front left tire of the vehicle and was taken to the pavement and dragged as the minivan turned away from the highway. The minivan ran over Callahan’s left leg and arm, narrowly missing his head, before it stopped. The children were not injured. Callahan was hospitalized for treatment, including surgery, of a fracture to his left leg and cuts and abrasions.