Two nurses describe swift civilian response to fatal pedestrian hit-and-run in Cheektowaga (2024)

Katie Barrera and Sabrina Gerster didn’t know Demario Patterson, the 21-year-old from Buffalo lying unresponsive in the road last Sunday at Walden Avenue and Union Road in Cheektowaga.

They didn’t know the circ*mstances that led to him fighting for his life.

But that didn’t stop them from coming immediately to his aid before emergency personnel arrived at the scene.

“It was not ‘if’ I’m stopping,” Barrera said. “I’m stopping.”

Cheektowaga Police described what happened to Patterson as a motor vehicle-pedestrian crash.

The timely action Barrera and Gerster took in the moment of a stranger’s trauma is a shared experience by a growing number of Western New Yorkers. Crashes involving pedestrians and bicyclists are rising in frequency, and motorcycle crashes tick up in warm weather.

When these occur at busy intersections such as Walden and Union, the sheer density of vehicles and people can cause chaos and make the immediate scene challenging to access for emergency responders. In the seconds or minutes before professionals arrive, life-saving measures applied by civilians – without interfering with the actions of emergency responders – can make a significant impact.

Barrera, Gerster and others did what they could to save Patterson, but he died at Erie County Medical Center shortly after the crash.

Cheektowaga Police said last Tuesday that the black sedan involved had been recovered. They told The Buffalo News on Thursday they were investigating criminal conduct in the case beyond leaving the scene of a fatal accident. The investigation continued on Saturday.

At least to the throng of 10 to 15 civilians who acted fast, none of that mattered in the final moments of Patterson’s life.

Gerster, a Lancaster resident, was riding home about 5:40 p.m. with her three teenage children. She said her daughter, the driver, screamed and said, “Mom, look what just happened.” Barrera, who lives in Cheektowaga, was driving to pick up dinner.

The pair – who combined have more than 40 years of experience in nursing – knew what to do, even though they did not have professional equipment with them.

Gerster said she saw blood coming from Patterson’s mouth and nose, with “severe trauma” to his abdomen. She was helped by a stranger who is a paramedic. The two supported Patterson’s spinal column, neck and head, and determined that the victim was breathing but unresponsive.

“It was devastating to see him in that position in the middle of a major intersection bleeding out,” Gerster said.

Their mission was to keep the victim as stable as possible until emergency responders and an ambulance could reach the scene.

“At that point, there was nothing much we could do than keep him stabilized and talk to him and try to clear his airway,” she said.

Barrera was also among the first civilians to spring into action. She grabbed a towel to apply pressure to a bleeding wound and passed out gloves to those attending to Patterson.

Barrera and Gerster said they tried to keep their composure as a crowd gathered around them and someone who said they were with Patterson cried out.

The two health care providers said they were thankful staff from WellNow Urgent Care, at Walden and Union, brought out supplies including an Ambu bag that can help resuscitate. When the first police officer arrived, another civilian helped him put out traffic cones to create a protected zone.

“We live in a community where people aren’t afraid to step up,” Barrera reflected. Emergency medical services reached the crisis, inserted an airway into Patterson and laid him on a spinal board.

It might be unusual that two nurses were among the first civilians to react a crash, but medical organizations try to prepare others by hosting first aid, automated external defibrillator (AED) and cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) trainings online and in person.

After the crash, Gerster shared on a community Facebook page that she just wanted to hug Patterson’s mother and let her know her son was not left alone. She said she was hesitant to post anything on social media because she did not want to upset the young man’s family, but wanted her and others to know.

She recounted to a reporter what she told the unresponsive Buffalo man.

“I’m sure he was suffering and I just let him know that I felt so bad for him and that he’s going to be OK and people are here with him,” she said. “I let him know to keep breathing. I just wanted him to be OK, but deep down I knew he would not be.”

Barrera, too, believed it would take a miracle for Patterson to survive. After the ambulance sped away, she returned to her car and cried, knowing that she and others who stopped did what they could to help.

“You gotta try,” she said.