Joseph C. Inman saved a boy from burning, Battle Ground, Washington, July 21, 2013. After a highway accident at night, a 16-year-old boy remained in the driver’s seat of the two-door car he had been driving, unconscious, as flames issued along the exterior of the vehicle’s driver’s side. Traveling on the same road, Inman, 24, college student, came upon the scene just after the accident. Believing the burning car to be occupied, he immediately ran to its passenger side and attempted to open the door but was unsuccessful. With seven-foot-high flames spreading along the driver’s side, Inman kicked the window of the passenger door twice, displacing it. He then reached into the car and unlocked and opened the door. Entering to kneel on the passenger seat, Inman grasped the boy’s right upper arm. Backing, he pulled the boy from the car and onto the pavement, where a woman joined him in carrying the boy to safety. Flames grew quickly to engulf the vehicle. The boy required hospital treatment for his injuries, but he was not burned.
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