A truck driver from Washington State is grateful to be alive after motorists pulled him from the cab of his burning semi Sunday. Pavel Plevako was pulling onto Interstate 29 at around 9:15 A.M., when he missed the traffic lane and ran into a bridge on the west side of Council Bluffs.
The impact tore the cab away from the trailer and resulted in the cab landing on the driver’s side. As Plevako was trapped in the rig, the trailer caught fire, and the flames began to spread to the cab. Two motorists who observed the crash, and two others, stopped to offer their assistance.
Two men using a crow bar pried the passenger side door of the rig open, while another pulled the driver to safety. Two young women, one of whom was reportedly a medical student, also stopped to help and treat Plevako, who suffered only minor injuries. It wasn’t long before flames from the truck’s punctured diesel tanks spread to the cab and trailer, which was carrying crates of produce.
Both were eventually fully engulfed in flames. Plevako told reporters in broken English, that he was very grateful to those who stopped and helped him.
By Ric Hanson, KJAN, Atlantic
