Cumberland County Deputy Devyn Templeton was honored yesterday as the Tennessee Highway Safety Office Deputy of the Year 2023 for his heroic actions on July 21st of this year.

On that day, Deputy Devyn Templeton responded to a traffic crash near mile marker 329 on Interstate 40 in Crab Orchard.

According to reports, a vehicle was over an embankment and on fire.

Deputy Templeton responded immediately. After arriving at the scene, he learned a mother and child were trapped inside the burning vehicle.

In an exceptional act of bravery and selflessness, Deputy Templeton entered the burning vehicle and rescued a child trapped in the rear passenger seat.

After ensuring the child was safe, Deputy Templeton returned to the burning vehicle, entered it a second time at high risk to his safety, and rescued the child’s mother, who was incapacitated. Deputy Templeton cut their safety belts to extract the mother and child from the vehicle.

“Deputy Templeton demonstrated an unwavering dedication to duty and extraordinary courage despite the imminent danger involved. Undoubtedly, his remarkable presence of mind, quick thinking, incredible bravery, decisiveness, professionalism, and a complete disregard for his personal safety permitted him to save the lives of these two individuals,” said Cumberland County Sheriff Casey Cox.

Pictured – Captain Jeff Slayton, Deputy Devyn Templeton, and Chief Jerry Jackson.