A driver was saved from potential burns by active bystanders late Monday. ADVERTISING A driver was saved from potential burns by active bystanders late Monday. The driver left the roadway near Waikoloa Junction about 9 p.m. Monday and struck an
A driver was saved from potential burns by active bystanders late Monday.
The driver left the roadway near Waikoloa Junction about 9 p.m. Monday and struck an embankment.
Clint Haley, 21, of Waikoloa, was headed back from the airport after he picked up his roommate.
They spotted a car off the side of the road, he said. Nothing seemed bad, he said, but his roommate suggested they stop.
Haley agreed and pulled over, seeing a group of people already trying to help the driver, who was trapped behind a stuck door.
Haley wrenched the door away, finding the man pinned between the wheel and his seat.
Haley began asking questions about injuries when he noticed flames starting from beneath the hood.
Haley pulled the driver out and carried them a few feet away. Some of the other people there brought a blanket and the group moved the man to a safe distance.
After the driver was extricated, the engine began to burn, igniting a small brush fire, said Lt. Juergen Conda.
The fire department was able to extinguish the fire before it could expand, Conda said.
“It was a big effort by a lot of people,” Haley said, as people helped keep the person calm, direct traffic and other critical tasks.
The driver was taken to the North Hawaii Community Hospital for his injuries. No further information was available concerning the his condition.
