After falling at his home, an elderly man thought help had arrived when a FedEx driver came to deliver a package as he laid helplessly on the porch. What the doorbell camera caught on video, however, is enough to turn anyone’s stomach.
Maria Kouches was stunned to see the doorbell camera video captured at her father’s Freeport, Texas, home after her elderly dad fell on his porch and was unable to get back up. After taking a spill, the 89-year-old man was lying helplessly on the porch when a FedEx driver came with a package. Kouches’ father, who suffers dementia, thought help had arrived, but he was sadly mistaken, and it was all caught on camera.
“We try to keep an eye on him, but he does still move around with his walker,” Kouches explained to ABC 7, referring to her elderly father. “It seems he was maybe trying to go back inside and his leg gave out. He gets confused and easily upset with new things,” she added. Sadly, after her dad fell, he laid helplessly on the porch for 15 minutes until a FedEx truck pulled up to his home to deliver a package.
Upon spotting the delivery driver, the unnamed elderly man thought he would finally get some help. The driver had exited the truck and was approaching the porch when the elderly man quickly began begging for help to get up, but he received a shocking response instead. Rather than walking up to the front door, the FedEx driver stopped short, setting the box down several feet away from the fallen gentleman.
All that could be seen of the 89-year-old man on the video from the doorbell camera were his hands and the tops of his legs as he laid on his back on the porch floor, but his cries for help were clearly heard. “A little help here, please,” he’s gently heard requesting. “Give me a hand,” he says, politely asking for help, adding, “I can’t get up.” Rather than come to his aid, however, the delivery driver refuses to help.
The doorbell camera video captured the FedEx driver running back to his truck after having clearly seen the fallen man, lying on the porch. When the elderly man calls out to him for help, he stops briefly and turns back towards him. “I can’t do that poppa. I’m sorry,” he immediately tells the elderly man before continuing to walk away.
Sadly, the poor man accepted the driver’s response, replying with resignation, “Oh, okay.” After closing up his truck, the FedEx employee drove away, leaving the victim helplessly on the ground. He would continue to lay on the porch for another 10 minutes before his daughter, who saw what happened on the Ring doorbell camera, could get to him and help him back up.
Disturbed by the chain of events, Maria Kouches took to Facebook to express her disgust, according to Daily Mail. “[He] didn’t at least ring the doorbell or call 911!” Kouches wrote, lambasting the seemingly heartless driver. “Thank God he’s OK, but what if he hadn’t been?” she asked, rhetorically. With viewers equally disgusted, the clip quickly began to go viral.
FedEx promised to review “the circumstances” and “take the appropriate action” after the footage was brought to their attention. “We extend our thoughts and concerns for the well-being of the person depicted in this video. The safety of our team members and customers in the communities that we serve is our highest priority,” the company said in a statement. “We are reviewing the circumstances behind this incident and will take the appropriate action.”
While I want to believe that the delivery driver may have been afraid to make physical contact, uncertain what might happen or whether he could get in trouble with his employer, there is absolutely no reason he should not have called for help. None. Not one. Even if he feared for his own safety or job security, he could have driven a safe distance down the road, pulled off, and called 911. It’s as simple as that. It’s common sense and common courtesy — both of which are greatly lacking in our world.
“And because lawlessness will abound, the love of many will grow cold.” — Matthew 24:12
In a civilized society, when you see someone asking for help, you get them help. That doesn’t mean you have to put yourself in any danger. You can ensure your own safety and call the authorities. That’s the beautiful thing about having an emergency response system. You don’t have to “be the hero,” but you do have to alert the heroes. There’s simply no excuse for turning your back on a vulnerable person, obviously in need, and walking away. It really doesn’t take a lot to be a decent human being. In this case, it was a matter of making a phone call.
