Romeoville Police Officer Woodsman Jones retired Burband Police Officer Wayne Young and Ernesto Irizarry, who is attempting to become an officer, came upon a vehicle in flames after an accident on Stevenson Expressway near Darien on December 1 and helped to pull the driver from the vehicle.
According to Illinois State Police Elgin District Sgt. Bruce Orns, the accident occurred when a man was driving his SUV the wrong way at about 5:30 am on I-55 at Lemont Road. The man, who was killed in the accident, struck a southbound SUV driven by the man pulled from the burning vehicle.
Jones, 38, was in his squad car en route to an unrelated issue at Loyola University Medical Center when he saw the accident on the other side of the road. “There were no other vehicles there so I stopped to assist,” Jones said.
Jones called for backup and reached the accident. “I jumped the median and went over there,” he said and saw the driver of the vehicle who caused the accident. According to Jones, the man was unconscious and partially out of the vehicle.
When Jones saw the other SUV in flames that were spreading, he saw a single occupant. Both Young and Irizarry stopped to help him pull the man to safety. The men carried the driver out of the vehicle and cleared a space for him on the ground before running to the other SUV.
Irizarry said, “We tried to help the other guy in the other vehicle but it was smashed and pinned up against the median and we couldn’t get to him.” The men went back to the first driver and moved him a second time as the flames grew and the tires of the SUV began to burst. The victim was transported to Advocate Good Samaritan Hospital in Downers Grove fully conscious.
