UPS driver Corey Howe poses in front of his truck, which he was driving when he came upon a rollover crash on state Route 73. (Provided photo — UPS)

ST. HUBERTS — Corey Howe’s UPS route on Sept. 25 was not a typical day of deliveries. By the time he clocked out that night, he had saved a man’s life.

Howe, 49, has been driving for UPS for 25 years. Before that, he was a member of the Marine Corps. These two careers did not have much crossover until last Monday, when he was behind a tanker truck driven by Gregory M. Breault as it rolled over on its side on the stretch of state Route 73 between Round Pond and Chapel Pond. The overturned tanker blocked both lanes of traffic and spilled an estimated 3,500 gallons of asphalt emulsion and 35 gallons of diesel onto the roadway. Howe was the first person on the scene.

“I was just, you know, probably a second or just a couple seconds behind it because … the dust was still up in the air and stuff from it rolling over,” Howe said.

His first concern was Breault’s condition. From the looks of the rollover — the truck’s cab was resting on its driver’s side — Howe feared the worst.

“I jumped out and I had it in my head that the person … was probably dead in the vehicle, by the looks of it,” he said. “As I’m, like, 5 feet from it, 10 feet at most, I can hear (Breault) yelling, ‘Help, help me.’ So, I’m like, thank goodness, you know. He is alive.”

Breault suffered injuries from the crash that were non-life-threatening — New York State Police said on Sept. 26 that he was taken to Glens Falls Hospital for treatment for neck and lower left arm pain. However, when Howe found him, he was still trapped inside of the cab of the truck and diesel was leaking around the crash site. Howe’s next concern was freeing Breault before the situation intensified.

“I was able to make it around to the front of the vehicle,” Howe said. “I pulled the windshield — what was left of the windshield — down. I had my knife in my pocket and I cut the rubber grommet (that) was basically across where the windshield would’ve laid and kind of, like, in front of (Breault), and I was able to cut that — I believe it was in two pieces — to get the large portion out.”

Howe told Breault that he was going to free him, but they would have to move quick — between the spilled fuel and damaged truck, a fire could break out at any moment. He cut Breault’s seat belt with his knife and then “bear hugged” him to lift him out of the cab. Breault’s legs were uninjured, and he was able to walk with Howe’s assistance to a safe spot down the road. From there, Howe cut through Breault’s shirt and began to assess his injuries. Though other bystanders were starting to come upon the scene, first responders had not yet arrived.

One bystander, a doctor, took over assessing Breault. But Howe was not finished — another emergency was taking shape back at the crash site.

“Simultaneously, I could hear people saying there’s a fire in the cab,” he said. UPS drivers carry fire extinguishers in their trucks, so Howe ran to retrieve his. He extinguished the “small fire” in the cab of the truck, then waited for troopers and firefighters to arrive on the scene to brief them on what had happened.

State Police Troop B Public Information Officer Brandi Ashley and Essex County Emergency Services Director Matthew Watts both expressed gratitude for Howe’s quick thinking in a crisis.

“The UPS driver that stopped and got the gentleman out of the truck, he did a really good job,” Watts said on Sept. 26.

Howe said that he was just doing what he thought was right.

“I did what I would think anybody else would do,” he said. “Some people are different in situations like that. I do have some military training from years ago, and I’m sure that played a factor in things, but I just reacted and assessed the situation and just took control and did what needed to be done until first responders arrived.”

Aside from his military training, Howe also credits UPS for properly equipping him to deal with emergencies. He is a member of the safety committee at UPS Plattsburgh and helps train new drivers in safety.

“With UPS, you know, we breathe and sleep safety, so safety’s second nature to us here,” he said. “We don’t train for that specific event, but we are set up for worst-case-scenarios on-road as far as being observant and paying attention to our surroundings.”

Howe has since been able to catch up with Breault, who is still recovering from his injuries. They spoke on Sunday evening and agreed to meet up soon once Breault is fully recovered.

In the meantime, Howe is still driving his regular route from Plattsburgh to Elizabethtown and Keene Valley.

Beyond making deliveries, Howe is a husband and father — he has been married to his wife, Dana, for 25 years and their 21-year-old twins, Evan and Tanner, both also work at UPS. He said he was grateful to UPS for being so “supportive” of him in the past couple of weeks.

“I’m glad I was there and I was put there for a reason, I think,” Howe said. “We had a great outcome to a horrific accident.”