Soldier rushes to dying man's aid after shooting

By Kelly McGrathJune 19, 2009

Shooting
(Photo Credit: U.S. Army) VIEW ORIGINAL

FORT LEWIS, Wash. - Two men parked outside the front door of the Lakewood Wal-Mart June 2 and entered at approximately 1:15 p.m. They loitered inside a bit until, suddenly, one man pulled out a gun and fired.

A bullet hit Kurt Husted, a Loomis armored guard who was leaving the customer service area with a bag of money in his hand. One of the assailants grabbed the bag on their way out of the store.

As the doorways of the Lakewood Wal-Mart filled with panicked customers scrambling to exit, one man, a Soldier, ran toward the sound of the gunshot. It was instinct; he needed to help.

His name was Spc. Skyler Ford, B Company, 5th Battalion, 20th Infantry Regiment.

To Ford, that Tuesday was supposed to be a simple afternoon.

It was the second day of his weeklong predeployment leave. Visiting family members went with him to pick up his contact lenses at the Lakewood Wal-Mart. It was a stop that would forever change Ford's life.

He heard the gunshot while standing at the Optical Vision Center. Customers pushed his grandparents into a closet for safety, while his wife, sister and parents watched him run toward the scene.

"I know that's what he does, but it doesn't make it any less terrifying when your husband's running toward a gunshot," his wife, Whitney Ford, said on Monday.

"I didn't know if I'd see him again, I didn't know if the shooters were still there, I didn't know what was going on."

As Ford got closer, he saw Husted lying on the floor with a gunshot wound to his neck, trying to ask for help. Ford knelt beside him.

"After I told him it was going to be OK, it was almost like he tried taking a deep breath," he said. "Then ... I could just tell he was gone."

Ford began directing customers away from Husted to store exits until he noticed Wilbert Pina, who appeared to be in pain. The single bullet that killed Husted had entered Pina's left shoulder.

He called to two women standing behind the customer service desk to grab a towel from a nearby basket. Pina said Ford wrapped it around his shoulder and put pressure on the wound.

"He was very helpful," Pina understated.

The woman who grabbed the towel turned out to be a nurse who maintained direct pressure on Pina's wound until the emergency medical team arrived. Ford went outside looking for authorities.

As the Lakewood Police Department arrived on scene, Ford not only gave the officers first-hand information, but also the bullet casing he had found and placed under a "Caution: Wet Floor" sign for safekeeping.

Ford's company commander said he expected nothing less from Ford.

"Knowing the type of person he is, when I found out what he did, I knew he'd be the first to help somebody out," Capt. Peter Casterline said. "The Army trains Soldiers for similar situations."

Ford acknowledged the Stryker First Response Course and EMT programs, while Casterline cited medical education and crime scene awareness as keys to his Soldier's decisive action on the scene.

"It was truly great to see a Soldier react with all the training and instincts that he has learned in the Army and provide critical aid to both the wounded and the police," Casterline said.

To Ford's wife, the incident was an eye-opener. She said she has newfound respect for the Army and looks at her husband a little differently.

"I know all the training he's had but I never got to see him in action," she said. "It actually makes me feel safer ... It's comforting knowing that he's very capable of those things."

Kelly McGrath is a reporter with Fort Lewis' Northwest Guardian.