JOHNSBURG – The quick thinking of a passer-by is being credited with potentially saving the life of a 21-year-old man who was unconscious in a car that caught fire in a driveway early Sunday.
According to the McHenry Township Fire Protection District, crews were dispatched at 2:02 a.m. to 2309 Goldenrod Lane for a report of a car fire with a person in the vehicle.
A neighbor driving by the home noticed the fire and stopped to alert the residents, according to a department news release.
While running past the 1994 Pontiac Grand AM, he noticed that a person who was not conscious was sitting in the driver’s seat. After trying to wake the driver by banging on the windows, the neighbor broke out a window and was able to rouse the driver and get him out of the car, according to the release.
McHenry firefighters later identified the driver as a 21-year-old man.
When the fire crews arrived within seven minutes, they found the vehicle’s owner trying to put out the fire with a garden hose. The fire was brought under control in 10 minutes.