Zachary A. McDowell helped to rescue Eric J. Stroud, Jr., from a burning vehicle, Waynesburg, Pennsylvania, August 3, 2018. Stroud was trapped in a sport utility vehicle after the vehicle left an interstate highway at night, overturned, and came to rest upright and partly on the road. Stroud’s vehicle caught fire. McDowell, 22, emergency medical technician, was on duty and dispatched to the accident in an ambulance with a male co-worker. Upon arriving, McDowell grabbed a fire extinguisher and fought the fire at the front of the vehicle. The co-worker entered the vehicle’s cargo area through the rear hatch door. The co-worker crawled to Stroud, who was tangled in his seat belt. McDowell extinguished flames on the vehicle’s dashboard and Stroud’s seat belt was removed. The co-worker grasped Stroud and pulled him into the cargo area. McDowell and his co-worker then removed him from the vehicle and away from the SUV, which was shortly engulfed by flames. Stroud sustained severe head injuries and burns to his legs and hands. 90345-10155
90345 – 10155
90345-10155