Franklin Officer Dustin Scott (left) and Whiteland Officer Jeremy McKinney (right) with Whiteland Community High School student Kaegan Elkins, who they saved in February after a UTV accident on the school’s campus. Scott and McKinney were honored with the Life Saving Award during the Clark-Pleasant School Board meeting April 18.
Submitted photos
Two police officers’ quick actions saved a teen’s life two months ago.
On Feb. 23, Kaegan Elkins, a student at Whiteland Community High School, flipped a utility task vehicle, or UTV, in the parking lot of the north end of the high school campus around the time school was letting out.
Officer Dustin Scott was working traffic near the school on Whiteland Road, and was one of the first to respond. Scott works at the Franklin Police Department, and he works part-time at WCHS as a school resource officer, or SRO.
Shortly after Scott responded, so did Whiteland Officer Jeremy McKinney, another SRO who was on duty at the time. At the scene, the two officers saw Kaegan Elkins trapped under the fallen UTV.
“I started talking to him. I was just trying to see how alert he was, and anything of that nature. And he was pretty alert, but he was very concerned about being in trouble,” Scott said. “I just kept reminding them, ‘hey, listen, we’re going to make sure you’re OK.’”
Kaegan Elkins’ left arm was severely injured and trapped under the UTV, McKinney said. Scott said he used his hands as a splint because he could tell the arm was broken, and McKinney grabbed a tourniquet from his truck.
Both officers worked together to apply the tourniquet to his arm. After that, EMTs arrived and took over before they transported him to a nearby hospital. Others, including Clark-Pleasant Police Chief Chad Pryce and Kaegan Elkins’ family members, were at the scene at this time as well.
Scott and McKinney later learned their swift actions saved Kaegan Elkins’ life. The laceration on his arm had struck an artery causing him to bleed internally. Doctors at the hospital said he may not have made it to the hospital alive if it weren’t for the tourniquet applied at the scene.
“The ER doctor wanted to know who put the tourniquet on … because it ended up ultimately saving his life,” Scott said. “We were just in the right place, at the right time.”
Scott and McKinney were honored at the April 18 Clark-Pleasant School Board meeting with the Life Saving Award, presented by Pryce. Both officers were previously full-time Clark-Pleasant Police officers before they moved to their current departments.
Kaegan Elkins and his family were in attendance at the meeting to thank Scott and McKinney for their help. The student’s father, Kyle Elkins, hugged the officers, and told them how much he appreciated them saving his son.
“I couldn’t thank them enough. I don’t know what you can give somebody that pretty much saved your son’s life,” Kyle Elkins said.
Kaegan Elkins is doing well in recovery going to physical therapy three times a week. His doctors are impressed with the progress he’s made so far, Kyle Elkins said. Kaegan Elkins plays lacrosse and he plans to play football in the fall, once he’s cleared. He’s training with the team now with weight limits.
He may not recover to get 100% of motion back in his arm, but he will get close, Kyle Elkins said. His arm needed skin grafts, so he likely won’t be able to bend it or straighten it fully again.
“He’s a tough kid,” Kyle Elkins said. “He’s not one to buck because it hurts or because he doesn’t want to. He’s doing his stretching and strength training on schedule every day … He is determined to get back to as close to 100% as he can.”
Scott and McKinney were grateful but didn’t expect rewards for doing their jobs to help people, they said.
“I’m a humble person, just like most officers are … We don’t, we don’t need that recognition. I mean, it’s our job, and we’re here to do that,” Scott said. “But after meeting with (the family), it made me feel pretty good that he’s got a new opportunity at life … He’s a sophomore. He’s young. He’s got a whole life ahead of him.”
McKinney said he was also glad to hear Kaegan Elkins is recovering well, and that he got to see him again and his family at the board meeting.
“We don’t do this job for the awards and recognition. Everybody does this job because deep down they care for people, they care for their community. They basically want to look out for and help people,” McKinney said.
The two officers were also recognized by Whiteland Police Chief Rick Shipp during the Whiteland Town Council meeting shortly after the school board meeting on the same day.
“They have both done a great job and saved this boy’s life,” Shipp said.
