Stagecoach Cartage & Distribution Driver, Adrian Parada, Recognized as Highway Angel by Truckload Carriers Association
EL PASO, TX… Stagecoach Cartage & Distribution, a Roadrunner Transportation Systems company, proudly announces that driver Adrian Parada from El Paso, Texas has been recognized by the Truckload Carriers Association as a Highway Angel. Parada is being honored for his quick response and brave assistance that saved the life of a pickup driver whose vehicle had caught on fire. Parada receives this honor during National Truck Driver Appreciation Week (NTDAW), where he will be recognized at the Stagecoach Cartage & Distribution corporate office in El Paso by fellow drivers and company representatives.
On October 25, 2016 at 3:00am, Parada was in Ft. Stockton, Texas purchasing fuel when he observed a pick-up truck on fire. Parada immediately called fellow Stagecoach Cartage driver Mario Guerra, asking him to call 911. Meanwhile, Parada went to see if the driver in the pickup needed assistance. As Parada approached the vehicle, he saw the driver attempting to get out of the truck. The driver fell as he exited and Parada pulled him to safety. Reports state there were two explosions and the driver experienced burns to his knees, feet and arms, but was safely away from the vehicle – thanks to the quick action by Parada.
Parada was nominated by Jennie Valenzuela, Vice President HR – Safety for Stagecoach Cartage. Valenzuela commented, “When I expressed my appreciation to Adrian, he humbly said ‘I did what anyone else would do.’” Parada joins fellow Stagecoach drivers Jaime Avitia, Jimmie Torres and Juan Varela, who have been nationally recognized in the past. Genuinely selfless in their actions, the Highway Angels are typically nominated by their employers, fellow professional truck drivers, or the motorists they’ve assisted out on the road. Once nominated, TCA investigates and verifies the details involved before recognizing the driver as a Highway Angel.
Since its inception in August 1997, TCA’s Highway Angel program has recognized hundreds of professional truck drivers for unusual kindness, courtesy and courage shown to others while on the job. Recognitions range from simple acts of kindness, such as fixing a flat tire, to heroic life-saving efforts, such as pulling someone from a burning vehicle and administering CPR.