A TRANSPORT VAN CARRYING FIVE HANDICAPPED PASSENGERS drew a crowd of Good Samaritans when it caught fire Wednesday in New Brighton, Minnesota.
The van was traveling along Interstate 694 with five passengers in wheelchairs who were strapped in place when it started smoking under the hood.
The driver pulled off the Interstate and into a strip-mall parking lot where the van started burning. Within moments, shopkeepers came running out of their stores with fire extinguishers, using them to break the windows in the van to help ventilate the choking smoke from the passenger area.
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WCCO / Michael Zerka photo
While the driver was evacuating one of the handicapped riders, the bystanders were taking turns holding their breath and entering the van to unstrap the helpless victims and then get them out. Just a minute later, after the last person was removed, the entire van broke into flames as the fire engine from New Brighton FD was arriving.
“I think we’re very lucky. Another 30 seconds to a minute, with that van we would have had very different results. It’s a very lucky day,” said New Brighton Public Safety Director Bob Johnson.
WCCO-TV Minneapolis has a video report HERE.
The Star Tribune has MORE.
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