Home   Kent   News   Article

Sappers go above and beyond the call of duty

Tracey Coyd with, from left, Cpl Daniel McLaren, Sappers Binod Rai, Ben Eustace and Anthony Batchelor, who came to Tracey’s rescue.
Tracey Coyd with, from left, Cpl Daniel McLaren, Sappers Binod Rai, Ben Eustace and Anthony Batchelor, who came to Tracey’s rescue.

by Jenni Horn

An army of Good Samaritans came to the rescue of a damsel in distress when a wheel flew off her car.

Tracey Coyd, of Balmoral Road, Gillingham, was driving her 10-year-old daughter to school on Friday when disaster struck just outside Brompton Barracks.

Tracey said: "I heard a knocking noise and at first I just thought it was my aerial because my car is quite old. I was about to pull over when the wheel just flew off."

Within minutes, a passer-by and a police officer had stopped to help. They were soon followed by two soldiers from the barracks, armed with a cup of tea and an offer to help replace the wheel.

A problem with Tracey's car jack meant the Royal Engineers had to call for back up - and four more Sappers appeared.

The men lifted Tracey's car while one of them put the spare wheel on.

Tracey, 42, said: "I was in a bit of shock. I was still shaking and my daughter was upset, but they just took everything in hand and went above and beyond the call of duty. It was brilliant.

"I had no idea what I was going to do. I couldn't move the car and I was on a busy road.

"I can't thank everyone who helped me enough, from the soldiers who put the wheel on, to the lovely people in the guardroom who made me a cup of tea, the police officer who was very comforting and rang the school to make sure they were aware my daughter may be upset and a lovely chap in a passing car who let me use his phone to call my dad.

"I was amazed everyone was so kind. It has restored my faith in human nature."

Cpl Daniel McLaren said: "We are always delighted to help if we can. This was a simple helping hand to a person in our community.

"Working as a team to get over any objective is a way of army life."

Has a Good Samaritan helped you? Leave your comments below.

Close This site uses cookies. By continuing to browse the site you are agreeing to our use of cookies.Learn More