Monday, March 2, 2009

Just Another Friday Night

I was on my way to a work party in Gahanna when.....
Operator: "911 what is your emergency"
Surprised Girl: "Um I am driving behind someone and the whole underside of their car is on fire, I'm trying to catch up to them but I haven't yet"
Operator: "Her car is on fire?"
Surprised Girl: "Yes, I know it sounds crazy but there are actual flames underneath her car"
Operator: "Ok tell me approximately where you are, what does the car look like and can you see the plate number......"
Surprised Girl: Won't bore you with the details but I answered all her questions While I am on the phone I am speeding like a mad woman all the while honking my horn at this car and yes I realize they probably thought I was crazy.
We finally get to a light and I am able to pull up around to the side
Fire Lady: "Ahhh is my tire flat again?"
Surprised Girl: "NO, YOUR CAR IS ON FIRE GET OUT OF THE CAR!!!!!"
Thinking back on it I don't know what I would have done if someone said this to me I don't think I would have done what this woman did I actually think I would have thought the person was playing a joke and not immediately jumped out of my car. Well anyway this lady did jump out of her car nearly missing being hit by another and no sooner than she shuts her door and backs away the whole car goes up in flames - NO LIE!
Surprised Girl: "I know you don't know me but get in my car you can't stand in the median, we have to get away from here "
The lady gets in my car and we drive to a nearby parking lot where we can still see her burning car. I tell her I have already called 911 but we were still moving at the time so she called again to give them our exact location
NOTE PEOPLE: if you want the police and firemen there in 1 minute flat tell them your car is on fire in the middle of a busy rode!
Police Officer: "Do either of you have a fire extinguisher in your car"
Surprised Girl and Fire Lady: "No?"
This little snipit is important for two reasons. First, why would it matter if she had an extinguisher in her car? Were they going to go jumping into the flames to get it out? 2nd, right after he asked us if we had an extinguisher he went and pulled one out of his squad car!! Hello officer but that just wasted .2 seconds of precious burning time (what I was thinking anyway)! So now the question, who just keeps an extinguisher in their car? Do you? Guess I better start! We both proceeded to give statements to the fire marshall and the cops. The mayor of Gahanna even showed up out of nowhere. The fire lady was so nice and kept telling me "You Saved My Life!" Well I wouldn't go that far, I was just in the right place at the right time and was glad I could help! Needless to say it was an interesting night.
This whole incident left me wondering a couple of things which is why I even posted this: Why on earth did nobody else honk or try to stop this woman to tell her about her blazing car? There were a dozen other cars around and everyone just kept driving by. Even after she was out of the car and it was left parked on this busy road, nobody stopped they just kept on driving by. What were people thinking? I don't know necessarily that the car would have blown up or anything but I don't think it was probably very safe to be anywhere near it. Anyway, it was just some food for thought. It was just another Friday night - hope yours was just as fun!

19 comments:

Becca said...

Wow! Quite the post. Not something you expect to see everyday. Glad you were there and took the initiative to call 911. And to all those other yahoos on the road - who just keeps driving? Seriously.

Annie said...

CRAZY! I remember you saying you had a work party. Little did you know how exciting it really would be! You are a hero!

kiki comin said...

crazy, crazy! i'm sure the lady was sure happy YOU were behind her!

Mike Richards said...

That is insane! I am glad everything worked out alright!

Amanda and Dallin said...

are you freaking kidding me!?? that is the scariest thing ever! good thing she didn't have kids in the car, and i'm so glad you were both able to get away safely. wow!

Tyler and Sunni said...

You didn't have an extinguisher in your car? I can't believe you wouldn't think to have one in your car already:) that's crazy. You are an angel, and really did save that ladies life. You go girl!

Ben said...

That's nuts. I think I heard about this car fire on the radio?? Way to be the hero!

Sara said...

Oh my gosh!!! That's insane! So glad nobody was hurt! So did it all really start because of a flat tire?

Bart and Krista said...

You are a HERO!!! This is an amazing story. I am disappointed you didn't have your camera with you to show the real pictures... geez! You really ought to be proud of yourself! You really did save her life!

Glass House said...

What a story!!! Geez how come everyone is having 911 stories right now??? Check my blog, you'll see mine, but not as Awesome as yours, plus you can see how we celebrated Dr. Seuss' birthday :)

Raquel said...

You are my HERO! Chase is a little slow, when he read this he didn't get that it was YOU who called 911. That's crazy and I'm so glad you saw the fire and got her out safely!!

Sarah Lunt said...

Oh my! Wow, I can't imagine how you kept such a cool head through all of this. I'm glad to hear you and the lady escaped unharmed. WAY TO GO!

Monica said...

Wow! What a story. Glad to hear that it had a happy ending and I am glad that you were there at the right time to save the day!

Jason and Ashlee said...

Just another friday night - whatever. Holy Cow - you are a lifesaver!!! What a scary experience for the fire lady, and good for you for staying calm and helping her out. I'm glad both of you are safe. What a story!

cheeks said...

holy crap!! That's crazy! Good thing you were on top of things!!

Matt & Katie said...

Holy Cow! What an experience. Glad you were there and able to help her out. That's pretty crazy.

Mike and Jodi said...

That's crazy! Glad you were there AND willing to help - unlike the other drivers.

Taunya and Ian said...

You're a hero! For the record I don't keep a fire extinguisher in my car either so don't feel bad! Good job on being the only one to 'save' this woman.

Todd and Ashley said...

That is a crazy story. I can't believe it. That will be a story you will tell your kids, grandkids, and so on.

I am so glad you signed up for the half marathon, it's going to be so awesome!!!