how-to
How to help someone who is stuck
The instinct is good. The execution is where people get hurt, especially near a highway in winter.
Short answer
In a parking lot or a low-speed street, stopping to help is usually fine: park safely, stay visible, and offer a jump or a push. On a highway shoulder, do not stop — call 911 or the state patrol so trained responders and warning lights arrive instead. In deep cold, getting someone warm matters more than fixing the car.
The facts, in one place
- Lots and low-speed streets: helping directly is reasonable.
- Highway shoulders: call it in, do not stop.
- In deep cold, warmth beats mechanics every time.
- Never leave someone stranded without confirming help is coming.
The parking lot version
Pull in where you are visible, leave room, and ask before doing anything. Most of the time the answer is cables and ten minutes. If the person seems disoriented, very cold, or unwell, that is a 911 call and not a mechanical problem.
The highway version
Do not stop on the shoulder of I-94 or I-29. Adding a second stationary vehicle to a fast, possibly icy road is how a bad situation becomes a crash. Call it in with a mile marker and direction. Dispatchers can send people with lights, training, and a legal right to be there.
Cold changes the priority
At subzero temperatures the car is not the emergency; the person is. If someone has been outside a while, getting them somewhere warm comes first and the vehicle can wait for a tow.
Questions people actually ask
Am I liable if I help someone?
This site does not give legal advice. Practically: do what you are competent to do, do not move an injured person, and call 911 when it is more than a favor.
Should I offer a ride?
That is a personal call and not something Help Me arranges. The app is not a rideshare and no request should be for transportation.
Keep going
helpers
Helpers show up
Apply in the app, submit identity evidence, wait on a staff decision. Current approval is required before you can see or accept requests in Fargo–Moorhead.
season
A blizzard is the one day to close the app
When travel is not advised, the right answer is not an app. What a blizzard closes, who to call, and the small help that still makes sense at home.
season
Thirty below changes the math
At thirty below, cars fail together and exposure is measured in minutes. What neighbors can help with, and when a warming center or 911 is the answer.
cars
A jump start, from someone nearby
Ask an approved neighbor for jumper cables in Fargo, Moorhead, or West Fargo. Public lots. Not a mechanic, not a tow, and not 911.
safety
Help Me is not 911
Help Me is for everyday, non-emergency help in Fargo–Moorhead. If you are in danger, call 911. Here is how to tell the difference.
emergency
Emergencies: 911, then the right local desk
Call 911 in Fargo, West Fargo, Moorhead, and Dilworth. Campus police and 211 are next. Help Me is not emergency response.
Help Me is a community app for adults in Fargo–Moorhead. It is not a K–12 student program, not a youth chat, and not campus police.