Unprepared, But Still a Hero

He saved two senior citizens from an attack by dogs.

He had to do it bare-handed, though:

After a long hot day of work for York County’s road maintenance department, Tim Walling was beat.

He was driving home at about 6:30 p.m., turning on to India Hook Road, when he saw a pair of dogs attacking two people.

A bunch of other drivers saw it too. They must have. It happened on the sidewalk and in a parking lot of an apartment complex on a busy city street, near an intersection with other busy city streets.

The man being attacked by the dogs, Andrew Jorgensen, 78, has had a triple-bypass heart operation and has an artificial knee.

His wife, Thelma “Tee” Carlile, 68, is being treated for angina, heart pains.

But Walling did not know any of that as he drove past the scene. All he heard was a woman screaming, terrified, as she held two little dogs, Rosie and Daisy, in her arms.

Walling, 46, did not do nothing, as all those other drivers did. He made an immediate U-turn, pulled his truck up on the sidewalk, and lunged out to help.

He had no stick or pole, no knife or gun. All he had to protect these two strangers was his body and his guts.

No tire lug wrench in the trunk of the car? Come on, now. For any of you reading this, do you have a basic tool or survival kit somewhere in your car? Maybe with a folding shovel for snow or sand or mud? A staff, if you're a hiker? Maybe a machete for chopping brush? These aren't expensive, and don't take up much space. The best solution for pit bulls is a gun, of course, but not everyone wants to invest the time and money to acquire a concealed carry license, and some folks aren't willing to leave a gun such as an old shotgun or .22 rifle in the trunk of their car for fear of theft. Any tool is better than no tool, though. Even a screwdriver is enough to fend off a dog attack.