A trucker trapped inside of his burning rig was rescued thanks to the help of a Good Samaritan who says he was going to either save the trucker or die trying.
The wreck in question happened on Tuesday, March 29th on Interstate 20 in Greenwood, Louisiana and sent two truck drivers to the hospital.
According to KPVI News, Kenneth Anthony Huskey Sr. was supposed to be in Dallas on the day of the rescue, but he had instead spent the night in Shreveport, and he thanks God that he did. The wreck happened in a construction zone along I-20, and witnesses say a semi truck smashed full speed into another rig, causing the fiery wreckage.
“The last rig that you see here just zoomed past me. He hit the other rig full speed; he never stopped. He never got an opportunity to stop. There were no signs to say that there was construction on the road,” saud Sharon Jones, who witnessed the wreck and called 911.
“When everybody kept saying get back get back it’s going to blow, when I turned, I heard something. When I turned I looked, and I kept seeing something move,” Huskey said. And that;s when he crawled under the burning rig to try to help the driver.
“The fire was actually right on the guy. And, I took my fire extinguisher and kind of pushed it back,” Huskey said. “I started pulling the debris off of him. He said please help me, help me. I said I’m not going to leave. Whatever happens, we do it together.”
Huskey and a few others at the scene then cut the driver free and pulled him from the wreck, likely saving his life. The driver was then transported to a nearby hospital. The extent of his injuries, as well as his current condition, are not known. No information on the condition of the other driver in the wreck has been released.
“It’s not odd for a group of firemen to do it. But, it’s a wonderful experience to see other pedestrians, people who are just in traffic, being willing to risk their lives as well,” said Ken Danapas, a volunteer fireman.
For Huskey, the situation was an opportunity to help someone in a way he wasn’t able to do in the past.
“I thought about my wife,” he said. “She died in my arms. I couldn’t help her. But, I was going to help him. … Yeah, I was going to help him.”