An off-duty Tameside firefighter who bravely took control as a civilian following a car crash has told MM how he had originally kept his heroic actions secret.
Kiavash Rostamian, 29, a firefighter at Ashton station, was on his way home on Thursday lunchtime, when he came across a car on its side in Stretford.
He took control of the situation, stabilised the vehicle and, until this morning thought nothing of it – but he soon found himself in the spotlight.
“I thought it was a wind-up,” Mr Rostamian told MM. “I didn’t even tell anyone what I did.
“Not my flatmates, not my girlfriend because to me it was – not to sound modest – what you do every day, your bread and butter.
“So I thought nothing of it and when I came to duty this morning people were talking about it.”
The man-of-the-hour slipped away from the scene once paramedics took over and his identity wasn’t known until today.
However Councillor David Acton, Chairman of Greater Manchester Fire and Rescue Authority, was quick to use the events as an example of the service’s staff.
“This shows the character of GMFRS firefighters,” he said.
“They never truly see themselves as off-duty and are regularly prepared to step in and use their expertise, even when they’re not with their crew and in uniform.”
Mr Rostamian is pleased his actions rubbed-off well on the service as a whole and said any of his colleagues would have done the same thing.
“With the recession and all of that, a lot of services are taking a lot of flak so it’s good to see we’re appreciated – that’s brilliant,” he said.
He was also delighted to see a number of other pedestrians stepping up to help yesterday, regardless of what they could offer.
“Other people were volunteering their skills,” Mr Rostamian added.
“I know, for example, there was a doctor volunteering and obviously he was asked to stand on the side in case anything progressed.
“It’s just good to see people that are willing to help and not stick their camera phones out.”
Picture courtesy of Wiki Commons, with thanks.
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