A Florida truck driver who gave away his load of plywood to those in need just before Hurricane Irma struck Florida says he knew he would be fired for his actions — but was just “trying to be a good American,” according to a report.
Long-haul driver Tim McCrory was transporting 960 pieces of plywood to a Home Depot in Zephyrhills, Fla., a Tampa suburb, on Sept. 8 when he blew a tire on his truck, he
Seven hours passed before he finally got the tire fixed and by the time he arrived at Home Depot, it was past 9 p.m. The store was closed and boarded as a precaution as the storm rolled in, according to the report.
Home Depot’s manager, who was leaving, told McCrory to return Tuesday, he said.
McCrory said he called his company’s dispatcher, who directed him to bring the load to Atlanta. But before beginning the trip, he decided to nap for a few hours.
Around 2 a.m., a police officer banged on his truck window and asked what was going on, before urging him not to bring the load to Atlanta, according to the report.
He’d be better off giving the plywood to locals who could make good use of it before Irma hit, the officer explained.
“I was ready to give [the lumber] up, 100 percent,” McCrory told “Inside Edition.” “I got kids of my own. I’m a family man. If I was in their situation, I’d want somebody to do that for me.”
McCrory, along with about 20 officers, started unloading the sheets as the cops began calling local residents.
“They said, ‘If you need plywood to board up your house, come and get it,’ ” McCrory said. “It’s a small town and everybody knows everybody. They got the word out. There was just a line of cars. The storm was coming, and it was coming fast.”
Residents began arriving to pick up the plywood — which ended up protecting about 150 houses, he said.
McCrory said that when he informed his superiors at Western Express what had happened, they told him, “We’re going to have to let you go” and that the plywood “wasn’t [his] to give away.”
Western Express did not immediately return “Inside Edition’s” email.
Tracy Dillon Drew, who received plywood from McCrory, for the good Samaritan after learning he lost his job.
“Even though we were all strangers, I cannot explain the sense of community I felt with those of us who were … lucky enough to not just receive plywood, but also receive a much more important gift,” she wrote.
“Compassion from a man who will risk getting caught in the storm driving back to his home to bring us wood, who also risked his job to make sure, regardless of Home Depot’s refusal to accept his order, that Zephyrhills would have some plywood.”