SAN DIEGO (CBS 8) - We're hearing from the San Diego police officer who risked his life to rescue a man from a fiery wreck.
Officer Dionisio "Danny" Medina happened upon a fully engulfed car in the middle lane of eastbound Balboa Avenue near Clairemont Drive in Clairemont Tuesday night and pulled the unconscious driver to safety.
"As Danny pulled up to the victim's vehicle - he saw that the inside was completely consumed with smoke," SDPD Northern Division Capt. Brian Ahearn said.
Moments earlier, the driver of an SUV who didn't see the broken-down Chevy rear-ended it, rupturing the car's gas tank and sparking the massive blaze. Without thinking of his own safety, Officer Medina quickly sprang into action.
"He was able to force open the driver's door," Ahearn said.
Medina found the 20-year-old driver unconscious, and battling the thick smoke, and made certain he was the only victim.
"So he actually reached inside and removed some debris on the back seat to make sure no one else was inside the car," Ahearn said. "Danny then took him by the shoulders and was joined by a second officer and was able to pull the driver to safety on the sidewalk."
It was an accident that could have quickly turned fatal had Officer Medina not heroically intervened.
"He would have died -- he would have burned in the car. He was unconscious, he was not moving," Ahearn said. "Danny was in the right place at the right time -- and he did the right thing."
Officer Medina, as well as the driver of the Chevy he rescued and the driver of the SUV that struck the Chevy, were all taken to local hospitals. Both drivers suffered only minor injuries. Medina was treated and released for smoke inhalation. He was back at work and on patrol Wednesday.
Officer Medina has been assigned to the department's Northern Division for the past four years. Before that, he served five years in the U.S. Navy.
