A man reportedly incapacitated by a medical situation was rescued from his burning vehicle by Dripping Springs residents late Thursday night after veering off of US Highway 290.
The incident occurred approximately a quarter of a mile east of Trautwein Road, around 9:30 p.m. on Thursday, Sept. 22. The man’s identity has not been disclosed by the Hays County Sheriff ’s Office for privacy reasons. He was driving a white pickup truck when the accident occurred.
“Hays County first responders received a report of a vehicle fire on US Hwy. 290 in Dripping Springs,” Hays County Sheriff Gary Cutler said. “Prior to any first responders’ arrival, local Dripping Springs residents William (Bill) Fults, Bridget Roberts and Matthew Hilton sprang into action and removed the incapacitated driver from the flaming vehicle. This selfless and courageous action saved the driver’s life.”
Fults was the first on the scene and was two cars behind the pickup driver when the truck “swerved out of his lane, went off the road and down into an embankment, just missing the guardrail.”
“I called 911 from my car, and they advised me that fire and EMS services were on the way,” Fults recalled. “But it was pretty clear that the man wasn’t getting out, and the car was full of smoke. There was no chance he would have survived in that cab with the door closed.”
For Fults, a former United States Army Ranger and medic, his first instinct was to take action.
“The grass around the vehicle wasn’t on fire, so I went down and opened the car door,” he continued. “He was clearly having a medical situation and was unable to get himself out of the car. He was unresponsive, and his arms were caught up in the steering wheel and seat belt.”
That was when passerby Roberts and Hilton came down the embankment, offering assistance and helping Fults to carry the man out of his burning vehicle. They carried the driver up the embankment and onto the shoulder of the road before moving him down to a safer location along the thoroughfare.
Fults speculated the driver’s left front tire might have come off the wheel, causing the fire to originate in the wheel well.
“When we pulled him out, the flames were up to the back end of the front tire,” Fults said. “He remained unresponsive until the fire department got there. Once they gave him some oxygen, he started answering questions, but it was pretty clear he wasn’t aware of what happened.”
Fults said that, while the incident was dangerous, it was reassuring to him to see the quick response from others in his community.
“This was neighbors helping neighbors,” he said. “The other two people were young, in their twenties, and most people think of kids that age as being self-involved or unaware. But there they were, standing next to me in front of a burning car.”
Fults himself was assessed by the EMS onsite for smoke inhalation and was released.
“I’m no worse for the wear,” he said. “Just a little cough.”
