A man was alive Thursday morning because an off-duty firefighter who was in the right place at the right time, but no one can seem to find the hero. The victim was trapped following a fiery crash on SR-408 at Rosalind Avenue in Orlando, Wednesday afternoon.
SLIDESHOW: Fiery Crash Caught On Video
The flaming accident high above downtown Orlando caught the attention of those on the streets. Home video showed how an accident victim's life hinged on those who stopped to help.
"All of the sudden, out of nowhere, the Impala jackknifed and came into my lane and I t-boned it," recalled Danny Hampton, who was involved in the crash.
Hampton was center stage as four cars collided on the overpass. One burst into flames just after the accident. An anonymous Lake County firefighter, first thought to be a deputy, was being credited for making the split-second rescue happen.
So the deputy did pull him out, noticed the smoke coming from under the hood. We have unconfirmed reports that he used an extinguisher. But he did pull him out and got him out of harm's way so our crews were able to stabilize him and get him to ORMC, said Dist. Chief Greg Hoggatt of the Orlando Fire Rescue.
The smoking car quickly burst into flames. Hampton was there, too, but had no idea who was who. A small group of people acted on instinct alone.
I tried to open the driver's side door, but I couldn't open the door. So I went around to the passenger side, and the passenger door opened and I grabbed him, said Hampton. You know what would have happened, I guess if I wasn't there to help him, then I guess he wouldn't have made it.
Investigators almost know the whole story, except for the name of the mystery fireman who, off-duty, did the job anyway.
Local officials were doing some research to try to find out the name of the mystery hero. The Lake County Fire Department said it hadn't heard anything about the amazing rescue.
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