The 75-year-old from the Holzminden district witnessed a traffic accident shortly before the Christmas holidays in 2022. Having been on the road himself for over 50 years, he saw an articulated truck crash on the Autobahn 2 near Bielefeld. He rescued the 58-year-old driver, who was in a helpless situation, from the cab with great difficulty. As it turned out afterwards, he did so at the last second, before the cab caught fire and burned out completely. Thanks to the timely rescue, the accident victim did not suffer any life-threatening injuries and has already thanked his lifesaver by telephone.
Werner Treichel was personally thanked and recognized by the head of the Bielefeld police headquarters last Thursday. Dr. Sandra Müller-Steinhauer took a lot of time and invited him to her office, where, despite the seriousness of the occasion, they quickly exchanged "old times" in a pleasant atmosphere. In a sometimes entertaining, sometimes thoughtful way, the haulage driver gave a vivid account of his life, in which he has undoubtedly experienced a lot.
The lifesaver was modest about his courageous mission: He did what was necessary. However, he was concerned that there were no other helpers. The emergency call was made by another truck driver who was on the service area directly at the scene of the accident; according to him, there was no other support.
Mrs. Dr. Müller-Steinhauer highly commends Werner Treichel for his exemplary conduct as a first aider. In a dicey situation, he did not look on, but acted and in all probability saved a human life.