A college student rescued a woman trapped in a burning car at a Chevron gas station in Beaverton, Oregon while bystanders watched the fire and took video with their phone.
Phillipe Bittar, 19, was driving near the gas station with his brother Raphael, 16, to get some food and saw the billowing smoke and flames. They drove closer to get a better look at the fire, which appeared to be spreading. Then, they saw a woman inside the burning car.
A woman ran to the car and frantically tried to open the passenger side door. A Chevron attendant raced to shut off the gas pump. The fire was spreading to a gas pump and was moving through the car’s trunk, according to Oregon Live.
Despite a crowd that had gathered to gawk at the fire, there was no one else offering aid to the woman who was in grave danger.
People were taking video video of what he found to be a woman trapped in her burning car.
Bittar told Fox12 News, “There was like six bystanders just videotaping like oh man she needs to get some help.”
“I wasn’t really thinking, I just saw her and knew I had to get her out of there before it gets worse,” Phillipe Bittar said after saving the woman’s life Saturday.
Bittar approached the car window and saw the woman wrestle with her seat belt. He punched out the car window with his bare fist. Then, he lifted the woman, who firefighters said was in her 70s, out through the smashed window.
Then, he walked the woman to people who knew her who expressed joy at seeing her alive. When Bittar turned around to see the car, it was engulfed in flames.
Fire crews responded to the scene and treated the woman for smoke inhalation and transported her to the hospital. She is expected to make a full recovery.
Bittar was treated for cuts on his hand by paramedics on the scene.
Firefighters later said in a statement that Bittar’s actions were nothing short of “heroic.” They said that Bittar had probably saved her life.
The cause of the fire is unknown and is under investigation.
