BATTLE GROUND, Wash. — James Troutman and Travis Langer are neighbors and fishing buddies. Getting out for salmon on Troutman's 21-foot jet boat is always a good time.
Coming home from the river Monday afternoon was not fun, as they pulled the boat along Northeast 179th Street in Clark County.
“There was a car in front of us”, said Troutman. “And I just mentioned to Travis that this guy was driving really erratically when I saw him cross the center line and (cause a) head-on collision into another car.”
It was the kind of thing where any one of us should stop and help. Troutman though, had an especially good reason to stop. He is a firefighter/EMT, a captain with East County Fire and Rescue, which serves Camas and Washougal.
Just a few miles from his home in Battle Ground, the off-duty firefighter and his neighbor did the right things to help. Meanwhile, the driver that caused the crash was acting suspiciously.
“The driver that caused the accident was shaky, twitchy, running around real nervous… As soon as he heard a siren, he cursed, jumped in my truck. So, Travis went to the passenger side, I went to the driver’s side to reach in to get the keys that he had found. And when that happened, he took off, pulling me along and hurting my knee, he hit Travis hard enough to break the phone in his pocket,” said Troutman.
The man, who had just crashed a stolen car, stole Troutman's truck, a metallic-gray 2019 Ford F-150 XLT. Along with it went the boat, taken by a desperate thief driving at high speeds toward Portland. Deputies tried to catch him but couldn't and the pursuit was called off.
The boat was recovered in Portland, but it was stripped of thousands of dollars of gear.
“Fortunately I did get my boat back and I want to say thank you to the Clark County Marine Deputy who was able to get that for me and bring it home,” said Troutman.
The truck is still missing, and Troutman doubts he will see it again.
“You need to do the right thing, you want to do the right thing, but when something like this happens, it's really frustrating," he said.
Adding to the frustration, Troutman is likely off the job for a few months because of his injured knee. But he’ll be back to help others again, when he’s better.
Friends have set up a GoFundMe to help with uninsured losses and to say thank you to a public servant. They invite you to make a donation if you can.
And if you see an abandoned gray F-150 in your neighborhood, call it in to police.