Colleyville honors 19-year-old who applied tourniquet and helped save his father

The City of Colleyville on June 17 recognized 19-year-old Seamus Kelly with a mayoral proclamation for his actions after an accidental shooting at the family home on April 25. Police and fire officials in Colleyville told council members Kelly found his father bleeding from an upper-left-thigh gunshot wound and quickly applied a tourniquet until first responders arrived.

Chief Miller (public-safety remarks recorded at the meeting) described the incident’s timeline and said Seamus’s actions "had a meaningful and life saving outcome to his father's injuries." The council presented a proclamation signed by Mayor Bobby Lindemuth that cites the April 25 call for service and commends Seamus for remaining calm, applying a tourniquet and notifying authorities.

Seamus, who spoke briefly at the meeting, downplayed the moment. "I didn't even really do it right. I missed his pelvis, which is where the bullet really ended up," he said, adding that he had taken a "Stop the Bleed" class previously and encouraged others to take the training. The meeting record notes Seamus has enrolled in an EMT academy this summer and credited an officer who comforted the family and hospital staff who treated the victim.

City officials, fire and EMS leaders and representatives from Baylor Grapevine Hospital joined the presentation. The mayor read the proclamation and council members and staff presented Seamus with a certificate and other tokens of appreciation. Council and staff repeatedly praised the stop-the-bleed training as an example of a public-education program that can produce lifesaving action.

Council members asked that the event be used to encourage residents to take first-aid and stop-the-bleed training and to recognize the city’s first responders who arrived on scene.