Salem man rescues woman from burning car on Memorial Day
When Brandon Finnen arrived at a Memorial Day cookout in Reading on Sunday, he didn’t expect that he would end up saving an unconscious stranger from a fiery car crash just down the street.
“It was definitely scary,” Finnen, 25, told WFXT-TV. “My adrenaline was definitely pumping.”
The vehicle struck a utility pole on Salem Street just after 2 p.m. on Sunday, according to the Boston Herald. Finnen rushed to the scene of the accident, where he found the driver of the car trapped inside.
Finnen said he initially wrapped a sweatshirt around his hand and tried to punch through the car window.
“Every time I hit the car, it felt like the flames were getting bigger and bigger, and I’m getting more and more nervous trying to get the woman out,” Finnen told the Herald.
Then, a neighbor handed him a wooden baseball bat, which he used to smash through the window and open the door. With the assistance of a neighbor, he was able to untangle her from the car’s seat belt and drag her away from the scene, fearing that the live wires near the flames would cause the car to explode.
The driver’s niece, who was in the passenger’s side of the car and successfully escaped the vehicle following the crash, told witnesses that her aunt had suffered from a seizure while driving.
The woman was hospitalized. According to WFXT-TV, she is expected to make a full recovery.
Finnen said his three-month-old daughter was his inspiration to push through and save the woman’s life.
“I think everyone thinks I’m a hero,” he told WFXT-TV, “but I don’t really think I am.”
