Columbus Technical College Carpentry Instructor Jaime Ferndandez isn’t a big fan of the spotlight. When he’s asked to talk about himself, he’s obviously uncomfortable. But these days especially, he’s finding himself answering a lot of questions from a lot of people and they all have to do with his new status as a certified hero.

In the early morning hours of September 25, 2008 the lives of Jaime Fernandez and his nephew, Enrique Gallardo, changed forever. The two men had been renovating Jaime’s sister’s home in New York to make life easier for his nephew with Down’s syndrome. The jobs took longer than either man had expected. Instead of napping for a few hours, Jaime and Enrique were wide awake and ready to hit the road. They got cleaned up and grabbed a thermos of coffee for the 18 hour drive back home to Columbus, Georgia. That’s when they found themselves in the right place at the right time.

The two men in a pick-up truck loaded with tools were barely on the entrance ramp to the Southern State Parkway when they saw the flames. A Toyota Camry had flipped upside down in the middle of the road and was afire. Jaime and Enrique pulled to the side and saw a crowd had already gathered but no one was moving. That’s when Jaime got busy.

“Nobody was moving. I went to the car and saw a man and woman trapped inside, screaming for help,” Jaime remembered. “All I was thinking about was reacting and wondering if kids were in that car. They’re always my main concern. They don’t understand what’s happening and they get scared.

Police believe the driver, Roney Rhooms, 52, was speeding and lost control of the Camry. His passenger, Cynthia Clark, 39, of Queens, New York is a mother of six children.

At five feet, five inches, Jaime Fernandez is not a large man but between years in the military and working in the carpentry industry, he is a strong man. He used every ounce of his physical strength, as well as his mental wherewithal to get busy.

When Jaime realized he and Enrique couldn’t budge the Camry’s doors or kick in its windows, he called on his nephew to get a tool from the truck to break the passenger window so he could pull the woman to safety. Coincidentally, the hammer that Enrique quickly retrieved was almost left behind at the work site. It was the last item packed in the truck and was under the front seat – within easy reach.

Jaime was able to break the window and, with her help, pull Cynthia to safety. Enrique stayed with her while Jaime went back to the burning car to try and rescue Roney Rhooms. By now, the flames grew, the smoke was thicker and blacker and the car was much hotter.

“All of the sudden, I heard a ‘FOOM’ like gasoline igniting,” Jaime said. “The heat got worse and the fire got bigger. I couldn’t get the man out.”

Jaime spent his years in the military as a demolition expert but exercises were always just that – exercises. There were never people trapped inside something they blew up.

“On our way back, I had peace in my mind that I did what I could to save him,” Jaime said while choking back tears. “I just wish I had more time. I still see his face but I try to put that picture of him to the side.”
But thanks to Jaime and Enrique, six children still have a mother.

Moms are important to Jaime. He lost his own mother when he was just 20 years old and his youngest sister was only 12. His own five children, his wife and his students now have a new name for Jaime Fernandez: “Hero.”

“I don’t think of myself as a hero,” Jaime said. “I just reacted. That’s the way I am.”

Cynthia Clark is now out of the hospital recovering from a broken foot and several burns. She and Jaime have talked on the phone and when she’s feeling better, Cynthia told Jaime that she’d like to come to Columbus and thank him in person.

In the meantime, Jaime Fernandez just hopes that his actions will prompt others to pay it forward. After all, you never know when you may be called to duty as a guardian angel or when you may need one yourself.