Richard Collins helped to rescue Eugene Brown from burning, Tunica, Mississippi, November 12, 1950. In a collision at night on a highway an auto-truck in which Brown, 52, construction foreman, Collins, 50, laborer, and Zack Smith Sr. were riding was damaged and turned over on its side. Gasoline escaping from the fuel tank was ignited, and dense flames rose four feet above the roof of the cab. The right cab door above the occupants was jammed. Collins rolled down the door window as far as he could, and he and Smith escaped from the truck. In attempting to climb from the cab, Brown, who was of heavy build, became wedged at the waist in the window opening. A strong wind fanned the flames to near the window, and Brown was burned severely and called for help. Collins and Smith ran 25 feet from the opposite side of the highway to the cab and took hold of Brown. Heat was intense. Standing two feet beneath the gusts of flame that rose higher and projected above their heads, Collins and Smith with difficulty freed Brown and pulled him outside the cab. During that time the flames attained a height of 15 feet. Collins and Smith lowered Brown to the roadway, and the three men crossed the highway. Within seconds the gasoline tank erupted in a burst of flames 50 feet high, and the cab was destroyed. Brown sustained third-degree burns of the head, face, neck, and arm and was hospitalized five weeks. 42225-3769
42225 – 3769
42225-3769