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Austin Smith, Michigan Teen, Lifts 2,000-Pound Vehicle Off Trapped Grandpa (VIDEO)

The Huffington Post   First Posted: 02/22/2012 12:40 pm Updated: 02/23/2012 2:43 pm

Austin Smith, a 15-year-old from Ida Township, Mich., was spending a Saturday morning working on a car with his grandfather when tragedy struck, WDIV Detroit reports.

While Austin was inside the car, it shifted and collapsed, pinning his grandpa, Ernest "Papa Ernie" Monhollen, under 2,000 pounds of steel.

"I was just so scared," Austin told WDIV. "I didn't know what to do."

In a burst of love, and most likely adrenaline, Austin was able to lift the front end of the car high enough so that his grandpa could crawl out, WFTS TV reports.

“Thank God he was here because if it was just me and his grandmother, it would have been over,” Monhollen said, according to the station.

Despite his miraculous escape, Monhollen suffered a serious cut to his face, fractured ribs, and injuries to his eye socket, a report by KABC states.

Nevertheless, "grandpa Ernie" is still incredibly grateful for his grandson.

"He's a wonderful young man," he told WDIV Detroit. "That's all I can say," Monhollen said.

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Austin Smith, a 15-year-old from Ida Township, Mich., was spending a Saturday morning working on a car with his grandfather when tragedy struck, WDIV Detroit reports. While Austin was inside the ca...
Austin Smith, a 15-year-old from Ida Township, Mich., was spending a Saturday morning working on a car with his grandfather when tragedy struck, WDIV Detroit reports. While Austin was inside the ca...
 
 
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05:58 PM on 02/23/2012
Adrenalin. 2,000 lbs. Right.(wink)
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HUFFPOST SUPER USER
Angie Daniels
Obama-Biden 2012!
04:25 PM on 02/23/2012
Yay! Like this story and love this new category. Sometimes we could all use a little good news.
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10:45 PM on 02/23/2012
agreed. i was just thinkg the same thing.
HUFFPOST SUPER USER
nanaofmysky
Cats just keep you around to serve them!
03:34 PM on 02/23/2012
Way to go Austin. The things you do out of love. Glad his grandfather is going to be okay. Such a nice heart warming story for a change. There is no fault to put on anyone. Accidents do happen. This time with a happy ending.
HUFFPOST SUPER USER
Felicia Hunter
Health/Pets/Politics
02:04 PM on 02/23/2012
adrenalin is the best thing we have going for us. It works wonders and have kept many people alive in dire situations.
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HUFFPOST SUPER USER
debnaert
02:03 PM on 02/23/2012
Saving money by crawling under a car isn't WORTH it... especially by a man his age... next time, hire it out.
01:39 PM on 02/23/2012
Wow kid! Amazing what love can do.
01:29 PM on 02/23/2012
Years ago my sister in law who is not much bigger than 2 toothpicks stuck together lifted a car off my brother. Didn't make headlines but just as amazing. Very up lifting story. Great that they were there at the right time and could find it in themselves to do such an amazing thing.

xvet
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Crisdean Wulver
"Deficits don't matter." --- Dick Cheney
12:30 PM on 02/23/2012
Amazing. I've been hearing about these kinds of stories all my life, but I wasn't sure they were true.
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MJinCanada
Safe from zombies until my 2nd cup of coffee
12:24 PM on 02/23/2012
Good for this young man! The right amount of fear without panic lets people do wonders to save their loved ones.

Some years ago when I was a reporter, I covered the story of a fellow who saved his daughter by bending the steering column of a tractor. Spring flooding had made their lane impassible for the school bus, so he was taking her to the main road on the tractor and it slipped off the road into the water-filled ditch. The tractor had no cab and he was pinned by the steering wheel while the little girl was knocked unconscious. He forced the wheel off himself enough to reach her and hold her head above water until his wife wondered why he was taking so long and went out to look.
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MsMoonpieJD
I have badges but HuffPo won't show them.
10:09 AM on 02/23/2012
There sure are a lot of negative comments here. Certainly a little bad judgment was in the mix, but it doesn't change the fact that this 15 year old kid picked up a car to save his grandpa. I think that's pretty amazing.
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charmainefromwa
Lady on The Beach
10:09 AM on 02/23/2012
Yes that happens sometimes adrenalin pumps and we react without realizing what we are doing. My daughter and her friends were in a wreck in front of my house I ran out and opened the door. To help them out and get them to safety away from traffic. When the police came they wanted to know who opened the door. It was locked. I just gave it one huge jerk and it poped open. It had been hit too and spun the car around. It was hard to open but it did come open. I was amazed i did that. But when that adrenalin pumps we just react. GOOD JOB YOU SAVED YOUR GRANDPA. God bless you both. God had a plan and now you know a part of it. You was there to help grandpa. I love this story.
09:53 AM on 02/23/2012
NO ACCURATE DETAILS ARE MENTIONED IN THE ARTICLE, BUT FROM THE DESCRIPTION OF WHAT HAPPENED, I GUESS THAT THE OLD MAN DIDN'T SUPPORT THE CAR PROPERLY WITH JACKSTANDS. ONE SHOULD NEVER EVER NEVER GET UNDER A CAR HELD UP ONLY BY A JACK. HE HAS ONLY HIMSELF TO THANK FOR WHAT HAPPENED & SHOULD CONSIDER HIMSELF VERY, VERY LUCKY THAT THE KID WAS ABLE TO LIFT THE CAR A SMALL BIT TO ALLOW HIM TO GET OUT.
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maternatura
Conservative Liberal and recovering republican
02:43 PM on 02/23/2012
Please STOP using ALL CAPS. It makes your post too hard to read. Thanks
02:50 PM on 02/23/2012
Thank you, Buzz Killington. You are hereby uninvited to the internet.
09:51 AM on 02/23/2012
Awesome story! HuffPost did it right for once.We ned to se more stories of THIS nature and less of hate,violence and death.We all know that those things happens all the time.

And to all those who are bashing the kid for siting in the car...you are all such penis-wrinkles! GET A LIFE!
09:49 AM on 02/23/2012
Well it's a good thing they were bleeding the brakes and not changing the oil or the kid might not have been there to help. It's always nice to hear of kids out there with common sense enough to take action and not run around with their heads cut off.
jerryatthebeach
Till Death Do You Barrier Island...
09:39 AM on 02/23/2012
Good story of miracles and family....