RIVERSIDE: Good Samaritans pull unconscious driver from fiery wreck
An unidentified good Samaritan pulls a victim from his burning vehicle. Riverside Fire Department / Steve Johnson photo
RIVERSIDE – City of Riverside firefighters are crediting several good Samaritans with saving a man from a fiery death after the driver lost control of his car and smashed into a palm tree Monday, Nov. 7.
After the car plowed into the tree it burst into flames. The fiery wreck happened at 1:03 p.m., in the area of Alessandro Boulevard and Mission Grove Parkway in Riverside.
City of Riverside firefighters and police officers and American Medical Response personnel were dispatched to the solo-vehicle traffic collision after several citizens called 911 to report the accident. Callers told 911 emergency dispatchers the driver was unconscious and trapped inside his burning vehicle and that flames were spreading to several palm trees.
As the flames intensified, three to four bystanders pulled the unconscious driver from his vehicle, as the fire quickly spread to the rest of the four-door sedan.
“Quick actions by the bystanders prevented further injury to the patient, Riverside Fire Battalion Chief Bruce Vanderhorst said while explaining the heroic actions of the witnesses who saved the driver.
Firefighters had the blaze under control within 15 minutes. Riverside Fire Department / Steve Johnson photo
After the victim had been pulled from the burning wreckage of his vehicle, firefighter/paramedics treated him at the scene before AMR medics transported him to Riverside Community Hospital. The victim sustained major injuries in the fiery wreck.
A total of 11 firefighters quickly brought the fire under control within 15 minutes of their arrival.
By the time the fire was extinguished, flames had spread from the vehicle into a palm tree and other nearby vegetation.
The fire also threatened seven additional palm trees at the Western Municipal Water District’s water efficiency garden at 450 E. Alessandro.
The cause of the accident was not immediately known and Riverside police officers were conducting an accident investigation.
There were no reported injuries to firefighters or other official personnel.
Anyone with information regarding this accident or who witnessed the collision is encouraged to contact Riverside police officials at (951) 826-5700. Callers can remain anonymous.
Contact the writer: [email protected]
Trevor Montgomery spent 10 years in the U.S. Army as an Orthopedic Specialist before joining the Riverside County Sheriff’s Department in 1998. He was medically retired after losing his leg in an off-duty accident.
During his time with the sheriff’s department, Trevor worked at several different stations, including the Robert Presley Detention Center, the Southwest Station in Temecula, the Hemet Station, and the Lake Elsinore Station, along with many other locations.
Trevor’s assignments included Corrections, Patrol, DUI Enforcement, Boat and Personal Water-Craft based Lake Patrol, Off-Road Vehicle Enforcement, Problem Oriented Policing Team, Personnel and Background Investigations and he finished his career while working as a Sex Crimes and Child Abuse Investigator.
Trevor has been married for more than 26 years and was a foster parent to more than 60 children over 13 years. He is now an adoptive parent and has 13 children and 12 – soon to be 13 – grandchildren.