The East Point officer who pulled a man from a burning car has been named the department’s “Officer of the Year.”
When Sgt. Henry Smith went to rescue the man, he didn’t know if the car was going to explode.
The officer told Channel 2 Action News the heat was so extreme he could feel the flames on his arms, and the worst case scenario was going through his head: “Just fearing that I wouldn’t be able to make it home to my wife and kids.”
Passerby Christopher Wright called 911 shortly after 1 a.m. Dec. 5 to say a car was on fire and a man was trapped inside. Wright said Smith, who had been patrolling the area near Washington and Arlington roads, made it there in less than 30 seconds.
Smith found an unconscious man behind the wheel of a red Chevrolet Aveo, and saw the hood was completely engulfed in flames.
“The driver inside, I was just concerned about him,” Smith told the television station. He couldn’t open the driver’s door, so he pulled the man out through the rolled down driver side window.
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Wright said he doesn’t consider himself a hero; he was just “at the right place at the right time.” For Smith, it was a joy to help the man “be able to get home for the holidays.”
The sergeant was honored Feb. 15 at an annual luncheon hosted by the Atlanta Airport Rotary Club.
The 34-year-old driver, who had veered off the road and hit a tree before the car caught fire, went to the hospital for injuries to his legs. Smith believes the driver fell asleep at the wheel and doesn’t suspect alcohol was involved, according to Channel 2.
The driver was cited for failure to maintain a lane.
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