A Utah motorcyclist who was pinned under a burning car after a collision has expressed his gratitude for the help of strangers who lifted the vehicle to rescue him.
"I'm just very thankful for everyone that helped me out," Brandon Wright told The Associated Press from his hospital bed. "They saved my life."
Authorities said Wright was riding his motorcycle on Monday on US Highway 89 near the Utah State University campus in Logan when the 21-year-old collided with a black BMW that was pulling out of a parking lot.
Tyre and skid marks on the highway indicate that Wright laid the bike down and slid along the road before colliding with the car, Assistant Police Chief Jeff Curtis said.
The bike hit the car's bonnet and bounced to the ground, while Wright slid under the car and then both vehicles burst into flames, Curtis said. Wright was trapped beneath the burning car.
A group of about 10 men and women rushed to help, tilting the car up to free him and pull him to safety.
"Every one of those people put their lives in danger," Curtis said.
"Those people are heroes. You can only speculate what the outcome would have been if they hadn't lifted that car and waited for the emergency service personnel to get up there."
Construction workers from a campus building project also grabbed fire extinguishers to try and put out the flames.
Chris Garff, a media production specialist for the university, caught the rescue on video. The 31-year-old was on the ninth floor of a university building shooting a promotional video for the school when he looked out of the window and saw black smoke billowing from the road.
"I turned the camera toward it and started to record," said Garff, adding that Wright's motorcycle was engulfed in flames.
"It was a remarkable thing to see 10 to 12 people lift that car and pull him out." Wright was taken to a hospital in critical condition, Curtis said.
The driver of the BMW, whom Curtis said was among the group that helped lift the car, suffered only minor injuries. He's been identified as John Johnson, the head of USU's Department of Management Information Systems in the Jon M. Huntsman School of Business.
Johnson did not respond to email and phone messages from The AP on Tuesday.
Curtis said he didn't know whether any citations would be issued or charges filed.
