Good Samaritan Video Goes Viral of Person Rescued From Fiery Car Crash: Watch the Heroic Footage
Some days, it can be hard to look past all of the chaos in the world and see that despite what’s going on around us, there is still good everywhere — and this was clear in a viral video capturing a heroic group of witnesses saving a driver from a burning vehicle.
The fiery crash – which is currently going viral on social media – took place in April in St. Paul, Minnesota. The driver, Sam Orbovich, drifted off the road and crashed into a pole and guardrail before the car caught fire. In the widely circulating video caught via dash cam, a group of selfless onlookers rushed to the fire-engulfed car and attempted to free Orbovich — despite the risk they faced as the flames raged on.
Kladir Tolla was one of the witnesses who aided in the rescue, and his dash cam actually caught the footage. For him, stepping in to help the stranger in distress was a no brainer.
"That could be me one day,” he told FOX9 of the recovery effort and why he was so quick to help. “What would happen if I was in that situation and my life was in the hands of strangers that I don't even know," he said.
The driver was freed from his vehicle after an intense struggle
After a terrifying effort to free Orbovich from his vehicle, a Minnesota Department of Transportation worker managed to break the window of the car with a window punch, a tool intended for quick and emergency evacuations from vehicles in which a window needs to be broken through.
As soon as they were able to free the man in the driver's seat, Tolla explained that the flames began entering the car through the driver’s side, meaning the rescue was complete in the nick of time.
The driver’s response to the viral incident
When all was said and done, Orbovich walked away with only minor and superficial injuries. He later released a statement in which he thanked the number of good Samaritans and first responders who put their lives on the line to save him. “Fred Rogers used to say that whenever someone sees something scary, 'Look for the helpers. You will always find people who are helping,’” he said in his heartfelt response to the incident.
"As an attorney who has represented caregivers in Minnesota for over 40 years, it comes as no surprise when well-trained professionals snap into action to save someone's life or keep them out of harm's way. But it is incredibly heroic when people driving down the highway choose to put themselves at risk by running toward the flames to extract a stranger from a burning car that could explode at any moment,” he said.
Orbovich, a 71-year-old attorney, went on to share his and his family’s gratitude for the selfless acts of the bystanders who saved his life, saying he looks forward to giving them his thanks in person. It’s moments like these that show that there is good all around us.
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