PHILADELPHIA — A teen volunteer firefighter and another man are being credited with saving the life of a police officer trapped inside a burning cruiser after a crash.
ABC 6 reports 30-year-old Officer Mark Kimsey was responding to a call Saturday evening when a pickup truck collided with his patrol car at an intersection.
17-year-old firefighter Joe Chambers and 24-year-old Dante Johnson then rushed over to the crash as the cruiser burst into flames with Officer Kimsey trapped inside.
“The door was slammed,” Chambers told NBC Philadelphia. “It was dented and wouldn’t open. The car caught fire. He [Officer Kimsey] said he couldn’t feel his legs. We had to drag him through the window and he was ready for it.”
The pair, along with other bystanders at the scene, then pulled the 52-year-old driver of the pickup out of his vehicle.
Both Officer Kimsey and the pickup driver were transported to a hospital in stable condition. Kimsey suffered head trauma and burns to his legs in the crash. The other driver also suffered head trauma. Both are expected to recover.
Chambers suffered minor injuries in the rescue and was treated. He later visited Officer Kimsey in the hospital and posed for photos.