Chicago Gainer, 15, pulled from burning truck by strangers and saved after car accident in Myakka City, Florida

Modified Date: 
Thu, 10/01/2015 - 2:33pm
Accident Date: 
Monday, April 6, 2015

2 strangers pull teen from burning truck

“It was just a horrific scene,” said Doug Dewell, one of the people who stopped to assist. “I've never seen anything like it. This was blaring flames. It was like a blow torch.”

Man suffers burns saving teen from fiery crash

"I got a hold of him and started pulling him. You started hearing a loud cap, like a cap coming off of something," he said. "I pulled and pulled, his butt was over the door, and all of a sudden, when I heard that noise, it went boom. And I guess it had two propane tanks in there. Nobody told me that."

A truck that had been driving on State Road 70 struck a tree and caught fire, with two people inside. The driver, Wilfred Calvin Jones, 55, was not able to escape and died at the scene. 15-year-old Chicago Gainer was in the passenger seat, trapped in the vehicle. Passersby Levi Teuton, 35, and Doug Dewell stopped and helped to extinguish the flames. They were able to free Gainer, saving his life, before propane tanks in the truck exploded. Gainer was taken to a hospital in serious condition.

Type: Car Accident
People Involved: 
Doug Dewell
Chicago Gainer
Wilfred Calvin Jones
Levi Teuton
Roadway: 
State Road 70

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