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Who is John Holt? Virginia 'hero' cop lifts overturned car to rescue trapped woman in viral video

In his bodycam video, Holt can be heard grunting while he is lifting the overturned car in order to free a young mother who was trapped inside it

Sheriff's deputy John Holt is being hailed for his heroic act of saving the life of a woman by single-handedly lifting an overturned car off her. Holt's bodycam caught him in the Herculean act and he has been tagged a hero since then.

The video, posted by the Sheriff's office on May 18, has gone viral with more than 100,000 views on Facebook. "On May 7th, Deputy J Holt responded to an overturned vehicle with entrapment. The driver was laying underneath the vehicle with her head pinned by the sunroof. Seeing the trauma her child was witnessing, Deputy J. Holt went into overdrive. Through sheer will and determination due to fearing the female may succumb to her circumstance in front of her panic-stricken child, Deputy J. Holt took quick action and was able to physically lift the vehicle up enough for the driver to manoeuvre her head out to safety," the sheriff's office said.

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What happened at the accident scene?

A car met with an accident and overturned on May 7 in Gloucester County with a woman trapped in it. In the video from his body camera, Deputy Holt arrives at the scene and tells the dispatchers that a car is flipped over. Her distressed son can be heard crying and seeking help from the deputy, who asks him if his mother was trapped beneath the car.

"Yes, she can't breathe! Mommy! Mommy! Mommy! Mommy!" the young lad cries while trying to get near his mother. That's when Holt tells the dispatchers that her head is pinned underneath the car's sunroof. The video then goes black for a while as Holt's body camera is pressed up against the car, and he is heard grunting while attempting to lift the car up. The woman is then able to remove her head from beneath the trapped vehicle as is clear from the audio. It wasn't clear if the woman was injured.

Holt is being lauded on social media for his selfless, brave act. A Facebook user wrote, "Another Great job deputy Holt. Again you have gone above and beyond the call of duty. Putting others before yourself should show others that you take your job seriously and you care for the community. Your great heroism is unremarkable and we are proud and honoured to have you part of Gloucester's sheriff's department." Some comments on Twitter read, "What a hero", "Great. Not all heroes wear capes," and "Is the victim ok?!? Her kids?!? The sound of those kids screaming for their mom is heartbreaking. So glad he was there."

This is not John Holt's first heroic act

Holt was recently lauded with local and regional Top Cop Awards for saving a disabled young girl and woman from a burning house last March. On March 24, 2020, Holt rescued the victims from a burning house by crawling inside the smoke-filled structure without having a care in the world for his own life.

"While on patrol, Deputy J Holt responded to assist with a structure fire with occupants still in the residence. As he arrived, he heard a female yelling that there were people inside the home. Without hesitation, Dep. J Holt reentered the structure by low crawling once again and searching for additional victims. Believing that an infant was still unaccounted for, Dep J Holt, again without regard for his wellbeing, entered the house now fully engulfed by the fire for a third time to search for the baby," the officials said. Holt entered the burning house a fourth time in search of the infant, although he was safely removed from the house before the deputy's arrival.

Deputy Holt has emerged as a hero among the locals for his valiant acts.