A Navy veteran saved the life of a man who was trapped inside a semitrailer after a collision led the massive vehicle to become engulfed in flames.
Listen to the latest episode of CBN’s Quick Start podcast 👇
Mark Pembleton told WRC-TV he immediately pulled over Sept. 18 after seeing truck driver Cesar Yepez’s vehicle flip over and immediately burst into flames.
“While it was rolling, it was already on fire,” Pembleton told the outlet. “Then it rolled to a stop, and I immediately pulled over with my kids [and] told them to stay in the car.”
Video footage shows the hero running toward danger before working diligently to get Yepez out of the truck.
“I could hear him yelling, ‘Help, help, help!'” Pembleton said of the victim.
The scorching temperatures made it tough to pull Yepez out in one attempt, but Pembleton kept tugging him, retracting, and then repeating until the rescue was complete.
Others stepped in to help as well before emergency crews arrived at the scene and brought Yepez to the hospital where he remains in serious condition.
“Hoping, praying, everything for them,” Pembleton said. “For Cesar to get better.”
The hero, who is doing fine medically, sustained burns during the rescue. His selfless actions offer a powerful blueprint of what it looks like to love others more than we love ourselves. It’s truly a powerful story — but one that hasn’t yet come to a positive conclusion.
A GoFundMe for the Yepez-Casucci family has raised over $71,000, with the fundraiser explaining the full impact of the “potentially fatal semi-truck accident.”
“Thankfully, due to a few extremely brave and selfless individuals, Cesar is alive but fighting for his life on a ventilator in critical condition,” a statement reads. “Cesar has been left with 87% of his body in third-degree burns and they are currently unsure what the status of his brain, eyes, and lungs are.”
The GoFundMe explains the uncertainty has left his wife and two children in a “vulnerable state.”
“Cesar’s road to recovery is still very much up in the air,” the text continues. “This unfortunate situation will leave Cesar’s family in extreme financial strain.”
Please continue to pray for Yepez and his family.
***As the number of voices facing big-tech censorship continues to grow, please sign up for Faithwire’s daily newsletter and download the CBN News app, developed by our parent company, to stay up-to-date with the latest news from a distinctly Christian perspective.***