A trucker who witnessed a heroic rescue by police officers following a crash in South Carolina on Sunday called in to show his praise for their bravery in saving a woman trapped in her burning car.
Woman Trapped In Car After Rear Ending Semi
The crash happened on Sunday night around 11:30. Police say that a passenger vehicle rear ended a semi truck on I-95, causing both vehicles to catch fire.
The truck driver, Mohammed Syed, was able to get out of his vehicle and attempted to rescue the woman, but said that the door was locked and that he was unable to help her out.
Police Pick Up Rescue Effort Where Trucker Left Off
Florence County Sheriff’s Office Deputy Tyler Urquart and Corporal William Odom soon arrived on the scene. Urquart was able to brave the flames to pull the woman out of the wreckage while Odom helped to keep the fire at bay. Syed later described watching as Urquart broke out the window and fully entered the burning car to unbuckle the unconscious woman and pull her to safety. Syed said that the woman likely would have died if her rescue had taken even a few seconds longer.
The woman was transported to the hospital with serious injuries.
Said Sheriff Kenney Boone, “There is no doubt that the quick response and selfless determination of Tyler and William saved this woman’s life.”
Driver Moved By The Selflessness And Bravery Of Officers
Syed later called the Florence County Sheriff’s Office to express his admiration and gratitude for the selflessness and bravery of the officers: “God bless him, God bless his family, God bless everyone.”
Syed stated, “I just want you to tell Mr. Tyler that he is my hero, and I’ll never forget it.”
You can listen to Syed’s emotional phone call in the video below.
[su_youtube url=”https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IdGZaw77lE4″ width=”700″ height=”500″ responsive=”no”]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XnjfwzFztBQ[/su_youtube]
Update: Florence County deputy rescues woman from fiery crash on I-95 https://t.co/1rcl0Qb06Q “He’s my hero and I will never forget him.” pic.twitter.com/7ZDnY60ag0
— WPDE ABC15 (@wpdeabc15) September 27, 2016
Sources:
WBTW
Kenney Boone