Paul E. Wittke, 40, houseman, rescued Donnell D. Owens, 22, air cadet, from burning and an explosion, Sarasota, Florida, March 15, 1944. An airplane which Owens was flying crashed and came to rest 15 feet from a seawall along Sarasota Bay. The motor and propeller broke free of the fuselage, and one or more of three gasoline tanks exploded. Flames from burning gasoline 20 feet high covered the airplane. Wittke ran to a point 20 feet from the airplane, heard Owens call for help, and saw his head and arms extending from the cockpit. Running to the side of the cockpit, Wittke reached inside, grasped Owens’s jacket, and pulled him part way out. Owens’s clothing and hair were ablaze. Machine gun ammunition was exploding at irregular intervals. Wittke lifted and pulled Owens out, dragged him 15 feet away, and then tried to put out the fire on his clothing by beating it with the parachute pack which dangled from Owens’s shoulder. He called to another man who was near to help him, but more ammunition exploded, and the man did not respond. Wittke then dragged Owens 50 feet farther and continued to beat out the fire. Men on an Air Base truck arrived and extinguished the fire on Owens. Owens was removed to a hospital and died shortly after being admitted. Wittke sustained severe burns of the hands and wrists and was disabled for four weeks. 40152-3377
40152 – 3377
40152-3377