HUTCHINSON -Two officers of the Hutchinson Police Department have earned a life saving award for their actions that saved a woman’s life last month, according to a media release from the police department.

The life saving award is the fourth highest award given to officers in the Hutchinson Police Department.

On July 26, a concerned citizen observed a distraught woman at a bridge.

Hutchinson police officer Bobby Jarmer was the first to arrive on the scene.

He found the woman hanging off the side of the bridge, with her elbows over the railing.

The bridge was high enough that if she fell it would cause great bodily harm and more than likely, death, according to police.

Officer Jarmer spoke to the woman in a calm and reassuring voice, but she did not respond to him.

Officer Todd Allen was the next to arrive. He and Jarmer quickly and quietly devised a plan to save the woman.

She closed her eyes, which she later told officers that her intentions were to let go and harm herself.

The officers seized the moment when she closed her eyes and quickly closed the distance, grabbing her, pulling her over the rail to safety.

The officers acted very quickly with no regard to their own safety.
The son of the concerned citizen who called 911 to report the woman hanging from the bridge called the Hutchinson Police Department Friday morning.

The caller expressed concern that his father should also be recognized for his actions.

The concerned citizen who called 911 to report the woman hanging from the bridge is Kirby Kerschner.
Police Department officials say they appreciate the willingness of citizens to report any item of concern.