'Good Samaritan' Uses Baseball Bat To Rescue Woman From Burning Car
READING (CBS) - A man at a Memorial Day cookout in Reading used a baseball bat to rescue a woman from a burning car.
The woman, Laura McCaffrey, was driving with her niece down Route 129 in Reading when police say she apparently had a seizure and lost consciousness.
Her car completely knocked down one utility pole and crashed into a second pole. The crash broke her windshield and her car caught on fire.
Cookout attender Samantha Fuschetti said the cookout had just gotten started when the crash happened.
"We were just settling-in getting ready to cook and we heard a loud bang. It sounded like a shot. One of my friends, Brandon, ran to she scene," Fuschetti said.
When Brandon Finnen arrived at the crash site, he discovered that the car was already on fire and noticed that the driver was unresponsive.
"I saw the car on fire and the lady was unconscious in the driver's seat. Her niece came around and tried to open the door. I told the niece to back up and I tried to start breaking the window with my fist," Finnen said.
That was when a friend handed Finnen the bat he used to smash through the window.
"I unlocked the door and opened the door. The flames got bigger at first and I backed up. Then I thought about how I would feel if I couldn't get her out. So I just reached in, unbuckled the seat belt, and used all my might to pull her out as strong as I could," Finnen said.
Witnesses say the driver's side was completely engulfed in flames after he pulled out the woman.
Although Finnen doesn't think he's a hero, his friends say he is.
One of the friends, P. J. Fuschetti, even believes Brandon saved the woman's life.
"I definitely think she would have passed away, you know. Something bad could have happened. Yeah, he saved her life, definitely," Fuschetti said.
The crash left 1,300 customers without power for a couple of hours. Authorities say power has been completely restored.
McCaffrey and her niece were taken to the hospital and police say that their injuries are "non-life threatening."
The names of the crash victims haven't been released.
