Port Moody, B.C., police praise man for de-escalating mental health crisis, saving child

Port Moody, B.C. -

Port Moody police are commending a good Samaritan whose swift and bold actions may have saved multiple lives.

Andrew Logan says he was driving west in the 2200 block of St. Johns Street last Monday night when he noticed an odd-looking situation up ahead of him.

“I saw a man standing in traffic out in the centre lane,” Logan said.

He decided to pull over to check in on the man, then made a shocking discovery.

"The girl turns her head towards me and that's when I realized he was holding a child, so I asked him, ‘Why are you standing out in the middle of the road holding a child?’” said Logan.

“He starts speaking to me, but he's not making sense. His words aren’t linked together with any sensible meaning.”

Logan says he pulled his truck across the road to stop traffic from getting through, before proceeding to convince the man to put his daughter back in their car.

“As I was talking to him, he kept saying he needed his daughter to be safe, he kept repeating that, before finally putting her in her car seat,” Logan said.

He says he then discovered the man also had a young son sitting in the front passenger seat.

While the two kids remained safely in the vehicle, Logan says he had to continuously restrain the man from running back out into traffic.

"I didn't want to be manhandling him, but I knew at the same time, traffic is coming, and people can't see him," Logan said.

Port Moody police arrived to the scene just moments later, bringing the children to safety and taking the father into custody under the Mental Health Act.

"We are commending Andrew for his actions on that day,” said Const. Sam Zacharias, spokesperson for the Port Moody Police Department.

“He certainly went above and beyond what we would expect of the public. He put himself in harm’s way to protect this young child."

Logan is quick to shoot down the idea that he’s a hero, saying he was simply doing his duty as a fellow citizen.

“There’s a lot of people travelling back and forth not stopping to find out what’s going on, so if not me, then who?” Logan said.

“We all need help sometimes and if we remember to be there for each other when we need help, then things will go a lot smoother, and everyone will have a better life.”