2 young children, mother injured in car fire in Wilmington, Delaware, fire department says
WILMINGTON, Del. (CBS) — Three good Samaritans are being hailed as heroes for saving the lives of two children trapped in a burning car in Wilmington, Delaware, on Monday night.
Wilmington Fire Department crews responded to the intersection of A and South Walnut streets around 7:30 p.m. Monday for a report of a car fire with children trapped inside.
Witnesses said the driver had just left the Shell gas station when her car burst into flames. She was able to get out of the car and yell for help.
Two nearby car wash employees, Julio Andrés Jiménez Colon and Helio Solano Encarnación, along with their friend Angel Rivera, rescued a 5-year-old boy and an 8-month-old girl from the burning car.
"Those three guys are heroes and very brave," Pamela Dubroff, co-owner of Final Focus Photography, said. "I just can't say enough about someone who could put themselves in danger for someone who they don't even know."
The children and their mother were taken to the hospital with serious burns.
Delaware's Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control was called to the scene due to a fuel spill from the car, Robert F. Pryor, the battalion chief of the Wilmington Fire Department, said.
The fire marshal is investigating what caused the fire and if there were any fireworks inside the car.