A Lincoln County man is being called a Good Samaritan and a hero after rescuing a female teen trapped in a SUV.

On Dec. 6, Toby Collier was going from job-to-job and ended up running materials for his business when something caught his eye. As he was turning on Highway 94 coming from St. Louis, off Interstate 61, he saw a vehicle turned upside down.

“There was already a huge presence of cars parked on the side of the road taking pictures and videos,” he said. “I figured it was empty as I was going around the debris. I look back and notice a hand waving inside. My body just kind of took over so I really never had time to process what to do. Once I saw her hands and her screaming for help, my body just kicked in and said it was time to go.”

Collier says the 17-year-old driver of the 2023 Kia Seltos was on her hands and knees as the vehicle was overturned, trying to crawl her way out.

The back of her vehicle was busted but it was too problematic to get her out that way with the sharp, broken glass. Instead, Collier went over to the passenger door and “ripped it open.”

He was then able to grab her by the arms and pull her towards safety as she assisted with her knees and crawled out.

“She was extremely scared,” Collier said. “She fully trusted my judgment and knew she was in good hands. She knew she was safe now. It was a great feeling to help her.”

In a crash report, the Missouri State Highway Patrol states another vehicle hit the teen’s SUV after failing to yield and an unsafe lane change.

Jennifer Davis, the mother of the teenager, was called to the scene of the crash by Collier stating her daughter was involved in a small accident and that she was okay.

Based on that call, Davis was thinking a fender bender.

“I know now Toby was trying to keep me calm until I got there, by sparing me the true details.”

It has been reported the SUV flipped three or four times. Forever grateful, Davis says she is “overwhelmed with gratitude” for Collier being at the right place and the right time to rescue her daughter.

“I saw him at the scene when I arrived and gave him the biggest hug,” she said. “Toby is someone who went above and beyond to help and comfort a child who just went through the scariest moment of her entire life. My daughter has expressed to me many times how Toby’s presence was such a calming force for her in such a tumultuous event.”

After the incident, Davis says her daughter is still coping. Recently, she started therapy to deal with the emotional toll and to help her navigate PTSD (Post Traumatic Stress Disorder).

While Davis is overwhelmed with gratitude and appreciation for Collier’s unselfish acts, she is also overcome with another emotion, anger, amidst reports passers-by were more interested in taking videos and pictures than in helping.

“My first reaction is anger,” she said. “My daughter was screaming for help because she was upside down and trapped inside.”

Collier shares the sentiment noting as a father of a teenager daughter, he is totally content being her lifetime taxi, especially after this ordeal.

“I’m very upset with how humankind acted,” Collier said. “I don’t want to imagine my daughter upside down in a car feeling helpless without her parents and her family and nobody willing to help.”

Physically, the driver walked away with a few scratches. Emotionally, the healing is just beginning.

Davis says her daughter will be forever impacted. But this holiday season, she’s counting her blessings, reminded of how “sobering” this situation has been, and a lesson for all. While she is thankful her youngest child survived she is also fully aware of the other reality — she could have been planning a funeral rather than celebrating a life.

Also, Collier adds that all drivers must be mindful and safe — to slow down and stay fully focused.

Collier and Davis hope to reconnect in the foreseeable future on a much better and brighter day. To say thanks and give thanks.

“Toby is absolutely a hero,” Davis said. “To walk up to that horrific scene and offer to help. To call me and make sure my daughter had her mother by her side to comfort her. To stay by her side reassuring her until help arrived. That is a hero in my book. We will be forever grateful.”