BY ANDREA TORTORA
The Cincinnati Enquirer
BURLINGTON -- The two nursery workers just happened to turn off their noisy Bobcat front-loader Monday in time to hear a garbage truck flip over nearby.
They were about to become John Ballard's only chance for survival as the truck spewed gas and caught fire.
"We took off running toward the road," Frank Key said Tuesday. "We must have run 150 yards. When we got there we saw all this gas and smoke pouring out of the truck.
"We saw legs under the truck kicking, and we saw the guy's arms waving," said Mr. Key, who works at Ammon Wholesale Nursery.
Mr. Ballard, who was driving for Rumpke, had finished picking up garbage in the Oakbrook subdivision Monday when he heard a call for help with pickup in Wilder. He decided to offer his assistance and got on Camp Ernst Road.
His truck went off the narrow, two-lane road near Ky. 18, flipping and catching fire.
The truck was upside down when Mr. Key and nursery worker Gary Gampfer got to it. Mr. Ballard, 28, of Hamilton, was trapped underneath. "We've got to get him out," Mr. Gampfer said.
The men said later they weren't aware of the fire until after it was out.
The men put their hands under the truck and grabbed Mr. Ballard's pants legs. He had fallen through the front windshield and was stuck under the truck's hood.
"There was a big pop, and we fell backwards and let go of his legs," Mr. Key said.
The pop was the truck's tires exploding in the flames. The men caught their breath and kept pulling.
"We got back up and grabbed his legs again. You couldn't grab his arms. He was just black" from the smoke and fuel, Mr. Key said. "He was saying, "Help me. Help me,' " Mr. Key said. "He was choking on diesel. The fuel was pouring all over the guy."
When the men freed Mr. Ballard, they turned him on his side and patted down small flames on his clothes.
A woman arrived at the scene with a first-aid kit and an oxygen tank. She held Mr. Ballard and put the mask near his face.
"I know the guy was pretty tough," Mr. Key said. "He tried to get up twice. I know for sure he's going to make it 'cause he's pretty tough."
Mr. Ballard is listed in critical condition at University Hospital.
Mr. Ballard is single and started working for Rumpke in June 1994.
"It's eating me up," Mr. Key said. "I couldn't sleep, and it's hard to be at work. This guy is somebody's son, you know. He has family. I wish I could have run faster."
