LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- Good Samaritans jumped out of their cars to help after seeing a car flip over on the Watterson Expressway Thursday. Later they learned the driver died from a gunshot wound.
The witness WDRB spoke to was heading to nursing school on Thursday evening in the eastbound lanes of Interstate 264 near Breckenridge Lane.
The car flipped over right in front of her, and her training and instincts kicked in.
"It's my first time actually seeing something so traumatic," Rocio Diaz said.
For Diaz, it was just an ordinary day -- until it wasn't.
"I left work. I was heading to class, and it just happened. It was so sudden, and the car was just there flipped upside down," Diaz said.
The aspiring nurse didn't hesitate.
"It's time to use my knowledge on people that need help," Diaz said.
She tried to find a pulse in the middle of traffic.
"I felt the need to hop up, hop out of my car and try to help this guy in the moment," Diaz said. "I wasn't in shock. I wasn't like, stressed. My only goal was just trying to get this guy out alive."
Louisville police said the crash happened about 4:30 p.m., when a man driving a black Honda flipped and hit two other vehicles.
The man died at the scene, but when officers arrived they found out the driver had a fatal gunshot wound.
"Even though we didn't get to save him, we did the best that we could," Diaz said.
Police said the driver was the only person in the car, but it's unknown when or how he was shot.
Diaz said she noticed a gunshot wound.
"I hope his family is OK," Diaz said. "I hope his soul rests in peace."
Drivers in the other two vehicles involved in the crash weren't injured, but traffic on I-264 was snarled for hours.
Nursing student Rocio Diaz tried to save the man who died on the Watterson Expressway. (WDRB photo)
"It made me want to continue more, maybe want to study, want to learn," Diaz said. "Like, what can I do? What else can I do?"
Other people said they sat in traffic for over two hours after the crash took place. The name of the victim hasn't been released.
Diaz shared her story in hopes of inspiring more people to take up a career in nursing.
"One day, I'm going to be somebody's hero, and I'm going to save somebody's life."
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