A motorcyclist in China survived a crash Saturday in which his motorcycle burst into flames. A truck driver’s quick thinking spared his life.
Video footage of the crash shows the motorcyclist trying to stop at the intersection when he crashed into a garbage truck making a left turn.
The motorcyclist, named Chen, crashed into the truck’s fuel tank, which started a fire that engulfed the motorcyclist and the truck, WKRG reported.
The truck driver, accompanied by a few others, quickly escaped from the burning truck to rescue the motorcyclist from the fire.
“My truck was also on fire at that time. The door on my side could not open as the fire was darting over. I opened the door on the passenger side and jumped out. Then I rushed to the injured man (Chen) and rescued him,” said Yang Juyong, the truck driver who saved Chen.
Yang called firefighters and medical personnel, who extinguished the fire in 40 minutes and took Chen to the hospital.
ABC News reports that Chen’s injuries were deemed non-life-threatening.
“The first thing that came into my mind was rescuing the man. I did not care that my truck was burned. What I was thinking was trying to rescue that man first,” said Yang.
Traffic police determined in a preliminary investigation that Chen was driving too fast to avoid crashing into the garbage truck.