The man at the music festival had been beaten unconscious. Medical assistant Chase Brown may have saved his life.
"If that was my little brother or one of my friends, I would hope someone would help them."
August 4, 2023
Chase Brown thinks his inquisitiveness just may have saved a person’s life.
While walking to his tent at Rock the South, an annual three-day country music festival in Cullman, Alabama, Brown heard some commotion.
“As I was going through the crowd I heard a lot of yelling. I stopped because I am nosy. I’m glad I did,” said Brown, a recently hired medical assistant in the Gastroenterology Clinic at Monroe Carell Jr. Children’s Hospital at Vanderbilt.
He said he did not think twice about jumping into the fray in hopes of helping a festival goer who was in distress.
“I didn’t know where all the blood was coming from. That’s when I saw the large laceration on his forehead.”
“I saw a kid getting kicked, jumped on and stomped on,” recalled Brown, who heard reports that the incident allegedly stemmed from an accidently spilled drink. “I felt badly for him. No one else was helping.
“If that was my little brother or one of my friends, I would hope someone would help them. He was lying there, not moving.”
Brown, who had attended school to be an LPN and is interested in becoming a trauma unit or Emergency Department nurse, did not shy away from the injured man, who was later identified as 18-year-old Reid Watts.
“When I pulled him away and dragged him out of the crowd, he was unconscious. He had a faint pulse.
“I yelled for someone to call EMS, and I turned him over on his side. I didn’t know where all the blood was coming from. That’s when I saw the large laceration on his forehead. It was gushing blood. I held it until EMS got there,” recalled Brown.
As for Watts, he is home recovering.
His mother, Kaci Howard, is grateful for Brown’s bravery.
“I cannot talk about Chase without crying,” said a teary Howard. “I am convinced he saved my son’s life.
“I don’t know why Chase was there. I don’t know why he paid any attention, but he is just a godsend. The bravery it took to jump into the middle of that (situation) … the other guys were huge.”
Brown is also credited with having video footage of the melee, caught on his phone by his girlfriend.
According to news reports, the viral video was used by the Cullman Police Department to identify the three men accused of beating Watts. An investigation is ongoing.
Brown said he checks on Watts and his mother daily and hopes to make an official introduction soon.
While Brown can’t put his finger on the exact reason he reacted, he feels it is his calling to assist people.
“I always wanted to be a nurse,” said Brown. “I knew in fifth grade on career day. When a nurse started talking about what she did in the ER/trauma, I knew it was my calling. I just like to help people.”
Kimberly Chavis, manager of Patient Care Services, said what Brown did was admirable.
“He is a caring and sincere young man,” said Chavis. “What he did deserves recognition because not everyone would do that. I agree, if it was my child or me, I hope that someone would have the courage to step in.”
