JACKSONVILLE, Fla. -- The man and woman who helped save a teenager from being hit by several cars in Orange Park are telling how it happened to First Coast News.
They say young man was autistic and didn't understand the threat of walking across Interstate-295 when they intervened. Jason Gaston and Susan Bolton were complete strangers at the time, but they each parked in a lane to cut off traffic until they could bring the young man to safety.
"We were up on the interstate and we could actually see them going back and forth here," Gaston said.
He said they watched from the up on the busy on-ramp of I-295 as deputies drove up and down Blanding Boulevard below searching for the young man who had actually just been rescued by them.
"I believe it was over a few hours they were searching for him," Gaston said.
They said they could tell he was in imminent danger. He was alone and seemed to be unaware of his surroundings.
"He showed no signs of fear, no, none whatsoever," they said. "We thought he was 12 but the sheriff’s office said he was 19."
"They did mention they might have to do a water search because autistic children are often drawn to the water," Bolton said.
It was their teamwork that reeled the young man to safety.
"If he had crossed that barrier wall he would have been in three lanes of traffic that were completely unprotected," Gaston said.
They say he was only wearing shorts at the time, no shoes or shirt.
"I pulled in the left lane, she pulled in the right lane, that’s when he darted in front of us and nearly got hit, he was within two feet of a truck," he said.
They kept him company until deputies arrived.
"People need to pull over, slow down, be courteous and just ask if someone needs help," Gaston said.
First Coast News hasn't heard from the family yet and we are still waiting to hear back from police on the incident. Gaston and Bolton believe the young man was taken safely home.