PHOENIX – Two Phoenix police officers pulled a man from a burning car, and the officers’ body cameras captured the dramatic rescue.
In a Facebook post sharing the video, the Phoenix Police Department said some community members jumped in to help them save the man.
The officers told KNXV they felt like it was a scene out of a movie, but they were grateful to be able to save the man’s life. “This is abnormal for a lot of people, but for us, it’s just a normal day,” Officer Rachel Fernandez, one of the officers in the video, told the station.
Officer Fernandez and officer Jessica Hunting are the two officers who are on the video. They can be heard asking, “Anybody inside?” and then counting as they coordinated to pull the man to safety.
“My thought process was I need to get him out and if I get hurt in the process it doesn’t matter. I need to get this person first where they’re already hurt and I have strength at the moment to get him out to help him out,” Officer Fernandez told KPHO.
Time was critical for the officers. “I’ve had accidents like these before when you just don’t know what’s going to happen. Don’t know if the fire will increase — not increase, explode — not explode,” Officer Hunting told KPHO.
The car caught fire after hitting a power pole, KNXV reported. The driver was taken to the hospital and is expected to survive. Police told KNXV they are investigating the cause of the car crash.
