Must see: Officer pulls unconscious driver from burning tractor-trailer to safety

(As originally published with video and gallery, Thu, September 7th 2023, 2:18 PM EDT)

SALISBURY, N.C. (TND) — A police officer made an amazing rescue, and his heroics were all caught on camera.

He saved a non-responsive truck driver from a burning tractor-trailer on a North Carolina interstate highway, last month. The body-cam footage was just released this week.

Lt. Corey Brooks of the Salisbury Police Department was responding to a separate incident on the evening of Aug. 8 when he saw the truck hit a retaining wall on Interstate 85 and catch fire.

Brooks didn’t hesitate. He stopped and ran to the truck’s cab, and found driver Michael Williams unconscious.

First, he called for help. Then, listen as he tried to get the driver’s attention.

The video shows the officer reaching for the driver’s seat belt and pulling Williams out of the driver seat, and over the passenger seat. He quickly got the driver out of the burning truck.

An unidentified woman stopped and helped the officer pull Williams to safety across two travel lanes, on the opposite side of the road.

Luckily, Williams started to gain consciousness as paramedics and firefighters arrived. He didn’t know what happened but was able to walk to the ambulance.

Lt. Brooks started as a patrol officer almost 25 years ago. He rose through the ranks, and his regular job is with the department’s criminal investigations-violent crimes unit.