Congressman Saves 11-Year-Old’s Life After Using Two Pairs of Socks and a Seatbelt to Tourniquet His Arm and Leg

Wisconsin Congressman Derrick Van Orden is being recognized for saving the life of an 11-year-old boy who was critically injured in a car crash.

On Saturday, Aug. 16, Van Orden and his family were driving on I-35 to attend a memorial for his daughter, who died two years ago, when he heard what he described to KCCI as a “massive, massive boom.” The crash occurred about an hour outside Des Moines.

According to an Iowa State Patrol report reviewed by PEOPLE, the sound came from a minivan colliding with a semi-truck parked on the side of the highway. The truck had pulled over due to a mechanical issue and was preparing to merge back onto the interstate.

The minivan was driven by a 41-year-old woman suspected of being impaired at the time, the Iowa State Patrol said. Authorities have since opened an OWI (operating while intoxicated) drug investigation. Both the driver and her 11-year-old passenger were injured, but thanks to Van Orden’s quick actions, the boy survived.

The child suffered severe injuries, including an arterial bleed in his right wrist and leg wounds that exposed his tibia and fibula, according to Fox News.

Van Orden told KCCI that after stopping, he ran to his vehicle to grab socks from his suitcase to use as makeshift bandages.

“Then I put up two constricting bands because there wasn’t enough for a tourniquet,” he explained. “By then, several more people arrived, and I asked if anyone had a knife. A man handed me a carpet cutter, and I cut the seatbelts to use as tourniquets for his arm and leg to stop the bleeding.”

A former Navy SEAL and combat medic, Van Orden said he relied on his training in that critical moment.

“I’m not just a Navy SEAL, I’m a combat medic. That was essentially a wound of war,” he said. “When I saw the entire side of his leg was missing, from the knee down to the ankle, and his wrist was bleeding, from my experience, there was a high likelihood he would have bled to death before the ambulance arrived.”

Both the boy and the driver were airlifted to nearby hospitals. Their current conditions have not been released.

Van Orden later visited the 11-year-old in the hospital, where he told Fox News the boy personally thanked him. He also spoke with the child’s father.

“I was able to speak to his dad, who clearly didn’t know that our daughter had passed,” Van Orden said. “I told him, ‘Sir, our daughter passed two years ago, and I’m very thankful you don’t have to share that experience.’ It was a very humbling moment.”