A grateful retired firefighter reunited with a stranger he says saved his life by getting him to safety after a fiery car crash in Florida.
Retired fire lieutenant Richard Broccolo recalled the moment Aug. 23 he thought he was going to die after his car went off the roadway on Florida State Road 429. Family shared pictures showing the car upside down and mangled in trees.
But Corey Purington, a stranger, heard the crash while working nearby and went to help. “I looked up and I said, ‘Hey, you listen to me. I need you to help me. If you don’t help me, I’m going to die,’” Broccolo said.
As flames ripped through the car, Broccolo says Purington pulled him out just in time.
“A lot of flames, the car was upside down. I just, I seen a hand, so I reached in and did what I could do,” Purington said.
Broccolo faced a long recovery period, including more than a month in the hospital. He suffered burns to nearly a quarter of his body, a broken shoulder and several broken ribs.