Cecil County Sheriff’s Office Officer Annette Goodyear
A Maryland police officer came to the rescue last week, putting herself in the path of an incoming car in order to protect a young student.
On Friday morning, North East Police Department Cpl. Annette Goodyear was helping children cross the street to get to school when a car suddenly came speeding towards the crosswalk — all while the child was making her way across the road.
“Everything just happened so quickly,” the veteran police officer told The Washington Post. “It just didn’t seem real.”
As the student approached the crosswalk, Goodyear — who was wearing an orange safety vest — raised her hand in order to halt incoming traffic, footage from the incident shows.
Moments later, as she noticed the approaching car, Goodyear reached for the student, pushing her out of the way just in time. The officer was hit by the vehicle, which did not stop in time.
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Goodyear, who was not immediately able to get up off the ground, said that after being hit her top priority was to make sure the student was okay.
“I just remember laying on the ground and looking up, and the first thing I thought was ‘where is the student?’ ” she recalled to the Post.
Although the student was not physically injured, Goodyear told the newspaper that the child “was panicking” over what had just happened.
“I felt horrible, because I couldn’t just jump up and grab a hold of her and say, ‘everything is okay,’ ” she added.
Cecil County Sheriff’s Office Officer Annette Goodyear
The police officer suffered minor injuries and was taken to a local hospital, CBS affiliate WJZ reported. She was released later that day.
“We’re just extremely proud of her actions,” remarked Cpl. John Fakner of the North East Police Department, according to the outlet. “It was a split-second reaction that saved a child from potential injury. A job well done.”
The driver who struck Goodyear was issued four traffic citations.
“They were for negligent driving, driving on an expired registration plate, failing to stop at a pedestrian in a crosswalk, and failing to stop at a yield sign before entering a crosswalk when required to do so,” a spokesperson for the Cecil County Sheriff’s Office tells PEOPLE.
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As for what was going through her mind at the time, Goodyear said that her quick-thinking stemmed from being a mother of three.
“This is a kid, and I’m an adult. No matter what happens, you got to protect that child and make sure that child is safe,” she told the Post. “That was the only thing that was going through my mind. If I have to take the brunt of it, that’s what’s going to happen.”
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After being released from the hospital, Goodyear even went to personally check up on the student at her home.
“She came down the stairs, saw me standing there and as she was walking toward the door she was getting teary-eyed,” the officer told FOX affiliate WTTG.
“Then her dad started getting teary-eyed, and we all started at that point,” Goodyear added. “I was just so thankful she was standing there and that she was okay.”
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Now, the officer is being hailed as a hero by many, including Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan.
“I will be awarding a governor’s citation to Annette Goodyear for her incredible heroism in putting herself at risk to save a young student from being hit by an oncoming car,” Hogan announced on Monday.
Cecil County executive Danielle Hornberger has also said that North East Mayor Michael Kline plans to honor the officer as well.
“It was an amazing act of heroism,” Hornberger told WTTG. “It’s breathtaking; it’s amazing, and we’re just so proud to have Corporal Goodyear in our community.”
Added Cecil County Public Schools in a separate statement, “We are forever grateful for the selfless response of this hero.”