A hotel manager in Greenville, South Carolina jumped in to quickly save the life of a dog whose leash was stuck in an elevator. The small dog was following his owner toward the elevator on leash, but didn’t make it into the elevator before the doors closed and the unit began to ascend to the floors above.
General manager Ben Duke, who was nearby, instantly gauged what was happening and immediately went to action, effectively freeing the dog from its dog collar just in the nick of time. Thanks to Ben’s quick actions, no harm came to pass for the dog.
Ben stated that he grabbed the dog and struggled with the collar before adrenaline quickly kicked in, which allowed him to snap the leash itself to break the dog free. The dog’s owner tearfully ran to the site, and hugged Duke in gratitude.
Duke is receiving praise for his heroic actions, but humbly denies doing anything out of the ordinary. He stated that he couldn’t imagine doing anything differently, and did what one is supposed to do in that sort of situation.
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Ben Duke displayed a very humble and modest attitude toward his rescue, but I think his quick thinking and willingness to act deserve many kudos. It is not as common or normal as he seems to think it is to perform a much needed rescue like this.
In my experience as an animal rescue employee, I was frequently exposed to situations where people willingly turned a blind eye or ignored animals in distress or need of rescuing. Out of those who choose not to ignore the situations, most call someone else to take action.
It is a very small and rare percentage of people who would address the situation by taking immediate action and helping the distressed animal directly, and these people are rightfully labeled heroes.
The fact that Duke viewed his actions as ordinary and undeserving of praise really speaks to his character. If the world had more people like him, we would live in a much safer and more peaceful place.
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