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Chicago Officers Rescue Man After Crash On Stevenson Expressway

CHICAGO (CBS) -- Two Chicago police officers helped avoid a tragedy on a Stevenson Expressway ramp on Saturday morning.

Shortly after midnight, a Jeep slammed into a cement wall on I-55 at Pulaski and burst into flames.

The driver, screaming for help, was trapped in the vehicle.

Police officers Gino Garcia and Dexavier Langham were able to rescue the driver by using a pole they found nearby to break the window and unlock the door.  The driver "was discombobulated and the vehicle started to catch fire," said Officer Garcia.

They both pulled the man out of the vehicle.

"Once we were carrying him away, and we looked back the entire front end was all on fire," said Officer Garcia. "So in a matter of seconds, it was engulfed."

The driver was taken to the hospital with minor injuries. Police believe he had a medical emergency that caused him to crash, but he is expected to be OK.

"It's a good thing we got there as quick as we did, because you know it could have been a bad situation," said Officer Langham.

You can see the front of the jeep was badly burned. We don't know what caused the crash

 

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