TPD Officer Saves Tulsa Tough Cyclist
06/15/2015 – Tulsa Police officer Don Holloway was standing outside his patrol car along Cry Baby Hill when he noticed a bicyclist acting strangely during the second race of the day.
The man, appearing fatigued, pulled over to the side of the road. People gave him water, but it wasn’t helping.
About five minutes later, he collapsed.
Holloway, a 26-year veteran on the force, had never been assigned to the infamous Cry Baby Hill bike race near downtown Tulsa before Sunday. But he knew how dangerous fatigue under the hot summer sun can be.
“When I got over there, he appeared to be having a seizure or something like that,” Holloway said.
“After being there for just a little bit, he went into cardiac arrest. I had already called EMSA by that point.”
Holloway began performing CPR.
The race, happening around them near 13th Street and Jackson Avenue about 8:45 a.m., didn’t stop.
It probably was only a couple of minutes before medical personnel were able to get the cyclist on a stretcher, but it felt like 20, he said.
As they prepared to take the man, whose name has not been released, to the hospital, he appeared talkative, but was unsure of what was happening.
He was taken to Hillcrest Medical Center in serious condition. An update on his condition was not available Sunday evening.
“By that point, I was just letting EMSA take over and get him out of there,” Holloway said.
Soon after, a Cry Baby Hill Facebook page posted Holloway’s photo and a brief description of what happened. It started trending almost immediately, making the officer with the gray mustache and infectious smile a Tulsa Tough celebrity.
By 5:30 p.m., the post had nearly 5,700 “likes” and had been shared 866 times.
As people walked by his patrol car, many easily recognized him and shook his hand, thanking him for his heroism.
Holloway would smile and say “No problem,” but he’ll deny the title “hero.” After all, he was just doing his job.
“I’m not a hero. A lot of people stepped in and helped,” he said. “I just happened to be the first one there and able to help.
“I knew it was going to be crazy up here, but I sure wasn’t expecting that.”
In a statement to the Tulsa World, Saint Francis Tulsa Tough Executive Director Malcolm McCollam said, “For privacy reasons, we cannot comment, but we know medical professionals addressed the situation immediately.”