Good Samaritan Calls Cops on 'Christmas Vacation'-Themed Decor, Complete With Dangling Mannequin

Chris and Hannah Heerlein recreated the memorable scene in the hopes of winning the neighborhood's decorating contest.

A good Samaritan in Texas thought he was responding to an emergency after he saw what appeared to be a person hanging from a roof, tangled in Christmas lights. 

The would-be hero, identified as Alfred Norwood Jr., was captured on camera trying to move a ladder to come to the rescue of the man, screaming for help and eventually calling 911 when the dangling person didn't respond.

But it turned out that the man wasn't a person at all — it was a mannequin made to look like Clark Griswold, the buffoonish dad played by Chevy Chase in the holiday comedy “National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation.”

Chris and Hannah Heerlein recreated the memorable scene hoping to win the neighborhood's Christmas decorating contest. They spared no expense to make it look as real as possible.

"She was scared that something like this was going to happen and I said, 'No one will think this is real,'" Chris told Inside Edition. "She was right." 

"It looked so real and it turned out better than I could have ever expected," Hannah added. 

The couple told Inside Edition they couldn't believe “someone had the heart to stop and try to help.” 

"He said, 'I don't care who you are, if I see someone in need I will be right there to help,'" Chris said of Norwood. 

The couple has since put up a sign to inform people that the dangling mannequin is not a real person. 

The couple has now posted a sign indicating that it is not a real person hanging from the roof. 

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