Truckers step up to help person experiencing mental health crisis in Omaha

The Nebraska State Patrol (NSP) thanked a group of truckers who used their vehicles to assist with a person suffering from a mental health issue on an overpass on Monday.

The incident began at I-680 and Blondo Bridge in Omaha late Monday morning.

In images shared by Omaha Scanner, you can see five trucks lined up under an overpass. Omaha Scanner reported that the person was receiving medical treatment.

“Thankful for the quick response by officers, troopers, paramedics, and others to this situation today in Omaha, and especially to these truck drivers for stepping up to help. If you ever need someone to listen, help is a phone call away at 988,” said the Nebraska State Patrol in a social media post.

Truckers Stepped Up In A Similar Way in Detroit In 2018

After a similar incident occurred in Detroit in April 2018 during which 13 trucks lined up under an overpass to assist with a man experiencing a mental health problem, a Michigan State trooper explained that that the truck technique has been used by law enforcement for many years.

Michigan State Patrol’s Lt. Mike Shaw told Fox2 following the 2018 incident, “We have been doing this for as long as I have been in the department, which is 1995. We have kept it quiet for that long but social media and cell phones kind of changes that.”

Shaw went on to explain how the technique works: “We know that usually if someone jumps from that height it’s usually not going to be a good outcome. We will actually steal semi trucks out of the crowd and as we get the cars off the freeway we will direct the semis to another trooper that’s standing underneath the bridge and we will start to line them up right across.”

Shaw said that he never has a shortage of truck drivers who volunteer to help prevent a possible suicide. “They want to help out too. Nobody wants to see somebody take their own life and if it takes parking your truck underneath an overpass for a couple of hours to make sure somebody’s safe, they’re more than willing to do something like that,” he said.