Richard Edgar Gagnon helped to rescue Rita D. Gross from burning, Burlington, Massachusetts, July 20, 1988. Trapped in the back seat of a car after a fiery highway accident, Mrs. Gross, 70, struggled to unfasten her seat belt as flames on the car grew and filled it with smoke. After a man kicked out the rear passenger window, Gagnon, 35, truck driver, although shaken because his vehicle was involved in the accident, opened the door and reached inside for Mrs. Gross. He unfastened her seat belt and, with assistance from the other man, pulled her out of the car. They carried her to safety. Mrs. Gross was hospitalized with a concussion and second-degree burns, and she recovered. Gagnon recovered from a minor burn on his face.
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