CLEARWATER, Fla. – A car caught fire Friday afternoon on Gulf to Bay Boulevard in Clearwater, and a man was trapped inside until good Samaritans ran over and dragged him to safety.
What we know:
David Calderon is one of those men. He jumped off his motorcycle the second he learned someone was in danger and ran towards the flames.
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“I was recording, and then I saw an arm out of the car that’s trying to pull him out, and I didn’t think about it,” Calderon said. “I just ran right in. There was only one guy that was able to do it. He was struggling. So, I just helped him out. We did it together.”
The Porsche caught fire Friday afternoon, and investigators have not yet said what caused it.Â
“I grabbed him from under both arms, and we just lifted, and we tried to set him right next to the car, but everybody’s screaming,” Calderon said. “The flames. There’s gas everywhere on the [ground] so we kept we had to take him farther away.”
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What they’re saying:
Calderon did not downplay the danger of the situation.
“It was scary. It was really scary. It wasn’t just, let me just help somebody. It was very scary for us,” Calderon said. “I just wish anybody else would have done it. I hope somebody does it. For me, if it happens.”
Calderon was humble, singing the first responder’s praise.
“They were here within seconds, I would say, less than a minute,” Calderon said. “Thank God for them, they’re the real heroes. They’re immediate, what they do, and they were amazing.”
Dig deeper:
Luck was on this driver’s side. Clearwater Police and Fire Rescue spokesperson Rob Shaw was on the scene and helped to coordinate care as the man was rescued.
“We love that people want to get involved and help, you know, police officers and firefighters were on their way to the scene,” Shaw said. “But, sometimes that can take three minutes, four minutes. And it’s those minutes sometimes that could be crucial to saving a life.”
Shaw said these actions were lifesaving.
“I’d say had they not gotten involved, we likely would have a very different story with a possibly tragic ending,” Shaw said.
The victim was taken to the hospital. No word on his condition.
The Source: Information in this story comes from Clearwater officials and the good Samaritan that saved a man on Friday.