William W. Weyenberg saved Gilbert C. Zima from being struck by a runaway pickup truck, Mishicot, Wisconsin, May 28, 2000. Zima, 69, parked his pickup truck in the paved lot of a golf course and exited the vehicle, leaving its engine running. When the pickup then began to move backward in reverse gear, Zima returned to the vehicle, opened the driver’s door, and attempted to enter. He fell to the pavement, the pickup then running over him as, still in reverse, it started a course of counterclockwise circles that took it onto the adjacent lawn, then back to the parking lot. Standing nearby, Weyenberg, 63, retired scheduler, witnessed the accident. He ran to the pickup to enter it, but its open driver’s door struck him in the leg. The pickup continued to circle, striking Zima a second time and showing no sign of slowing. Weyenberg ran to Zima, grasped him by the shoulders, and dragged him from the pickup’s path just before the vehicle passed again. Another man drove his vehicle into the back of the runaway pickup, stopping it. Zima was hospitalized six days for treatment, including surgery, of his injuries. Weyenberg suffered a ruptured leg muscle, which required medical attention, and he recovered.
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