Mark L. Adams helped to save Elizabeth L. Wetherington from burning, Central Point, Oregon, March 18, 2002. Ms. Wetherington, 41, remained in the cab of her pickup truck after an accident in which the truck left the roadway, came to rest on its driver’s side, and caught fire at its front end and along its exposed underside. Approaching on the same road, Adams, 40, lathe operator, saw flames, then stopped at the scene. He stepped into the bed of the truck, broke out its rear window, and reached inside for Ms. Wetherington but found that she was caught in the wreckage. After retreating for air, Adams in repeated attempts tried to free Ms. Wetherington but was unsuccessful. While he left to obtain a garden hose from a nearby residence, another man at the scene approached the pickup and reached through the back window from the bed, but he too was unsuccessful in freeing Ms. Wetherington. He withdrew from the vehicle for relief from the intense heat. On a subsequent attempt, he pulled Ms. Wetherington by the arm and freed her, then removed her through the window to safety. Adams returned to the truck and assisted others in moving her farther away. Ms. Wetherington was taken to the hospital, where she was treated for injuries sustained in the accident. She was not burned. Adams also was treated at the hospital, for smoke inhalation, and he recovered.
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