When the torpedoes began to hit and bombs landing around him at Pearl Harbor, Jim Downing didn’t run for cover. He ran to help, sliding down the gun barrels of the USS Tennessee to reach the injured and dead aboard his own ship, the USS West Virginia.

He memorized the names of the men he tried to help, so he could write to their families and tell them he was with their sons in their last moments to offer the families comfort after the Japanese attack on the Navy fleet in 1941 that launched America into World War II.

Soon people who travel Interstate 25 under Cimarron Avenue bridge in Colorado Springs will know the span as the Lt. James “Jim” Downing Bridge. The House and Senate made the 103-year-old Navy veteran from Colorado Springs the namesake Tuesday.

He was greeted with standing ovation from lawmakers who also rose for chimes that honored the state’s war heroes.

After he retired from the Navy in 1956, Downing settled in Colorado Springs to work for The Navigators ministry. He is believed to be the second-oldest living survivor of Pearl Harbor.

“It will be a marvelous piece of construction when it’s finished, and it will be a fitting tribute to Lt. Downing,” said state Sen. Mike Merrifield, a Democrat who represents the district where the bridge is located.

“It’ll be part of what we use to remember the heroes of that war, and especially Jim Downing. I hope this bridge will be as strong and long-lasting at Lt. Downing is.”

Work on the $113 million interchange is expected to be complete by the fall, according to the Colorado Department of Transportation.

State Sen. Bob Gardner. R-Colorado Springs, cited Downing’s bravery and compassion under fire.

“Jim Downing is a true testament to the bravery and dedication to his country of the greatest generation,” Gardner said.

Sen. Owen Hill, R-Colorado Springs, added, “We get the chance to create a permanent marker in our community to not forget what happened and what our forebears have gone through in order that we may be here today, and we may go home tonight and sleep in peace, and sleep in comfort and sleep in safety.”