18-year-old Bryson Wilkinson from North Carolina was working a shift at a tree removal company when he got caught in a rope and ultimately lost his foot and part of his right leg
A man rushed to apply a tourniquet while they waited for first responders
Soon Wilkinson and Gary Caldwell, the man who saved him, were reunited at the hospital after Caldwell was injured in a crash
A North Carolina teenager who lost his foot in a tree removal accident quickly found himself recovering in the same building as the man who helped save him.
Bryson Wilkinson, 18, was working a shift at a tree removal company on Wednesday, May 21, when he got caught in a rope and ultimately lost his foot and part of his right leg in the accident, according to local NBC affiliate WECT.
“I thought it was over for me. I thought that was about to be the end of my life,” Wilkinson said.
Gary Caldwell, a resident of the area, rushed to apply a tourniquet and Wilkinson was taken to a local hospital to undergo an amputation.
Just two days later, Caldwell found himself at Novant Health New Hanover Regional Medical Center in Wilmington, down the hall from Wilkinson, according to local station WRAL.
“He ended up in a motorcycle accident,” Wilkinson told the outlet WRAL. “I just couldn’t believe what I saw.”
Doctors helped reunite them as they both began to heal.
“As soon as I walked in I broke down crying. I couldn’t believe it,” Wilkinson told WECT. “I’m going to keep staying in touch with him as long as I can.”
Since getting home from the hospital, Wilkinson has been sharing updates about his recovery on TikTok. A GoFundMe to support him has raised more than $1,000.
“I want to tell people that their life’s not over if they lose a limb. Things happen,” he told WECT. “They can get past it in life. They don’t need to give up. They don’t need to lose hope.”