FRANKLIN, Oh. — An off-duty West Chester paramedic climbed inside a burning SUV after a crash in Franklin to rescue the driver trapped inside.
Four occupants made it out of the blue sport-utility vehicle after it crashed into a tree and caught fire shortly before 5 p.m. on Ohio 123, just past Beal Road, Franklin police Lt. Brian Pacifico said.
However, the driver was stuck and the front doors wouldn’t open.
That’s when off-duty West Chester Fire Lt. Gary Zimmer entered the smoke-filled vehicle through the rear passenger area to help maneuver the driver and hand him to a Franklin officer behind him.
The driver, 18-year-old Frank A. Phillippe II of Franklin, was cited for failure to maintain control, Pacifico said.
He and three other people were taken to a local hospital for treatment of injuries that were not life-threatening.
