'I'm just thrilled this boy is fine': Winnipeg truck driver given award for rescuing boy

A Winnipeg truck driver has been given a special award for helping rescue an injured 12-year-old boy from a snowmobile accident.

On Monday, Dawna Jacobsen was named Highway Angel of the Year at the Truckload Carriers Association's (TCA) annual convention in Nashville. Jacobsen’s honour comes after her heroic act in December 2022 when she stopped to help a boy who drove his snowmobile across an Ontario highway and was hit by a car.

“Having seen the footage, I’ve been told and I finally accepted it and understand that yes, my actions prevented that boy from being run over again,” she said in an interview on Tuesday.

“The [snowmobile] ricocheting back into him, and hence saving his life.”

Jacobsen said she’s overwhelmed by her Highway Angel award, adding that she was not alone in saving the boy as two other people also came to his rescue.

She noted that she’s heard the boy is doing well.

“I’m just thrilled that this boy is fine. He’s okay,” she said. “What a traumatic event for him and his family.”

Jacobsen said that as a truck driver, she’s witnessed a lot of death and tragedy on the roads.

“We need to consider each other,” she said. “We need to get outside of ourselves and think about the other people around us and let them be safer.”

- With files from CTV’s Jon Hendricks.