VIDEO: Stranded Vietnam Vet Pushed Home on Scooter by San Diego Officers

Gilbert Larocque, 67, who was a door gunner in the Army during the Vietnam War, was out running errands in the San Diego community of Kearny Mesa when the scooter he relies on to get around died about 1:50 p.m. Sunday.

Two nearby officers, Eric Cooper and his partner Milo Shields, were monitoring traffic on Clairemont Mesa Boulevard when they noticed Larocque struggling with the chair.

“First we offered him a ride home,” Cooper told the San Diego Union-Tribune. “… But his power chair was important to him. It was his independence and his mobility.”

After exploring their options, the two officers decided to push Larocque back home — more than a mile away.

“My dad was a Vietnam veteran,” Cooper said. “If it was my dad, I would want someone to do the same thing.”

The officers knew the trip would be tiring, but they weren’t prepared for just how difficult it would be.

Every time they would get going, the scooter would put itself into gear and come to a stop. At one point, they were pushing the 300-pound machine across the ground on locked wheels.