Ernest F. Pirro, 42, taxicab driver, saved David M. Ackerman, Jr., 16, schoolboy, from burning, New Canaan, Connecticut, February 13, 1965. At night a sedan containing Ackerman and the driver veered from the highway, struck a stone wall and a tree, and turned over on its right side. Fire broke out at the front end, which was extensively damaged. The driver was thrown out of the vehicle. Ackerman was severely injured and lay in the rear compartment near the rear window, from which the glass was completely broken. Pirro stopped his taxicab and ran to the burning sedan. With the aid of a flashlight he saw Ackerman, whose feet were near flames which by then had spread to the floorboards and the front seat. Pirro reached through the opening of the rear window and pulled at Ackerman but could not move him. He then put his head and shoulders through the window opening, obtained a firm hold on Ackerman, and pulled him from the sedan. Ackerman lost consciousness. Pirro dragged him away from the automobile. Within three minutes the fuel tank exploded, and flames eight to ten feet high engulfed the sedan. Ackerman was hospitalized for his injuries.
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