A Springfield mail carrier's instinct may have saved an elderly woman's life

SPRINGFIELD, Mo. A mail carrier's instinct may have saved a Springfield woman's life.

"Just getting out there every day and serving my customers, helping them with whatever they need, keeping an eye on them," said Nicholas Falley.

He's been delivering mail for nine years.

"In order to provide good service we kind of have to know what's going on with our customers. If they're out of town or having issues with their mail being stolen. I treat my customers like they're my people. "I don't know them personally but I see them every day so we have a very intimate relationship yet very formal," he explained.

He, like many other mail carriers, become part of the neighborhoods they serve. They notice just about everything and everyone.

"When the weekend came and she hadn't picked up her mail I knew something was definitely a miss," said Falley.

After a few days’ worth of mail piled up in an elderly woman's mailbox he became concerned. He decided to check on her.

"I knocked on the door and I heard a faint, 'help, help.' I kind of sounded like a cat to be honest with you," he said.

Falley followed his instincts and waited around to be sure the woman was okay.

"Then the air conditioner kicked on so she started banging in there, on something, so that's when I knew it wasn't an animal," he said.

Falley called for help immediately.

He said that emergency responders had to force their way into the woman's house.

"They brought her out and it was kind of a miracle. I just happened to be in the right place at the right time," he said.

The woman had fallen. She was not able to move and laid on the floor for a few days until Falley noticed something was wrong and knocked on her door.

"I'm just glad I could be there for her. Not everybody has people looking out for them all the time, every day. I'm just glad I could be of assistance. It's an honor,” he said.

Falley doesn't consider himself a hero. He said he just cares.

"If everybody took a little bit more time to look after each other I think the world would be a much better place. I just do my little part. Every day," he said.

The woman Falley helped spent sometime in the hospital. He hasn't been able to speak with her yet.

He did, however, talk to her neighbors who told him that they are thankful for what he did that day.