This article is from the source 'washpo' and was first published or seen on . It last changed over 40 days ago and won't be checked again for changes.
You can find the current article at its original source at https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/public-safety/dashboard-video-shows-cops-pulling-man-from-burning-car/2016/03/11/69d6e490-e73f-11e5-a6f3-21ccdbc5f74e_story.html
The article has changed 3 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.
| Version 0 | Version 1 |
|---|---|
| Dashboard video shows cops pulling man from burning car | Dashboard video shows cops pulling man from burning car |
| (35 minutes later) | |
| A Montgomery County police officer was behind the wheel of his patrol car at 12:19 a.m. when he got the call: a wreck on the Capital Beltway. | A Montgomery County police officer was behind the wheel of his patrol car at 12:19 a.m. when he got the call: a wreck on the Capital Beltway. |
| Three minutes later, Cody Fields rolled up to a burning car. The stop, captured on his dashboard video recorder, probably saved the unconscious driver’s life and has led to Fields’s receiving his department’s highest award, the Medal of Valor. He and other officers will be recognized during a ceremony on Friday. | Three minutes later, Cody Fields rolled up to a burning car. The stop, captured on his dashboard video recorder, probably saved the unconscious driver’s life and has led to Fields’s receiving his department’s highest award, the Medal of Valor. He and other officers will be recognized during a ceremony on Friday. |
| The rescue unfolded early the morning of Sept. 1, on the left shoulder of the Outer Loop of the Beltway, between Georgia and Connecticut avenues. What follows is based on the dashboard video — released late Thursday night — and the official police account: | The rescue unfolded early the morning of Sept. 1, on the left shoulder of the Outer Loop of the Beltway, between Georgia and Connecticut avenues. What follows is based on the dashboard video — released late Thursday night — and the official police account: |
| Fields could see that the car was stopped against the concrete barrier and that the engine area was burning. He ran to the passenger side and saw a man behind the wheel who appeared to be unconscious. The passenger side door was locked; the window was up. Fields used his baton to break the passenger window, reach in and unlock the door. | Fields could see that the car was stopped against the concrete barrier and that the engine area was burning. He ran to the passenger side and saw a man behind the wheel who appeared to be unconscious. The passenger side door was locked; the window was up. Fields used his baton to break the passenger window, reach in and unlock the door. |
| By then, a second officer — Brian Nesbitt, who had just arrived — ran up to the car. He got into the rear passenger side. | By then, a second officer — Brian Nesbitt, who had just arrived — ran up to the car. He got into the rear passenger side. |
| With the fire spreading, both officers pulled out the driver and dragged him away from the vehicle. | With the fire spreading, both officers pulled out the driver and dragged him away from the vehicle. |
| Paramedics soon arrived, treated the 34-year-old man and took him to a hospital. He survived. | Paramedics soon arrived, treated the 34-year-old man and took him to a hospital. He survived. |
| Rescue workers on the scene said “that if not for the quick and heroic actions of Officer Fields and Officer Nesbitt, the driver would have succumbed to either smoke inhalation or the flames from the fire,” a police spokesman said Thursday. | Rescue workers on the scene said “that if not for the quick and heroic actions of Officer Fields and Officer Nesbitt, the driver would have succumbed to either smoke inhalation or the flames from the fire,” a police spokesman said Thursday. |
| Nesbitt also is expected to be given a Medal of Valor. He has been on the force for 12 years. Fields has been on the force for three years. | |
| Their actions are among many to be recognized Friday at the 42nd Annual Montgomery County Chamber of Commerce - Public Safety Awards. | Their actions are among many to be recognized Friday at the 42nd Annual Montgomery County Chamber of Commerce - Public Safety Awards. |