WHITMAN — For firefighters, there are really no “days off.”
Chief Timothy Clancy proudly reported Monday, April 14 that an off-duty firefighter from the Whitman Fire Department jumped into action to help save a woman from a burning vehicle after spotting the aftermath of a crash on the opposite side of the highway in Raynham the day before.
At approximately 11:43 a.m., Sunday, Whitman Fire Lt. Brian Trefry was off duty driving on Route 24 southbound with his wife in Raynham, on the way to pick up his children from his mother-in-law’s home, when he saw smoke in the distance on the other side of the highway. When he got closer, Trefry saw a heavily damaged SUV that had caught fire, before pulling over and then carefully crossing both sides of the highway to make it to the vehicle.
Trefry then realized that a woman was trapped inside the vehicle, which was stuck in a ravine on the side of the road following a rollover crash, with a fire starting to spread from the engine compartment of the SUV into the surrounding vegetation in the area.
On his way over to the vehicle, Trefry looked around for something to bust open the window to free the woman, finding a boot on the ground and then trying to break the glass, causing a “spider crack.” Then a woman on the scene offered a window punch, which also failed to break the glass. Finally, Trefry was able to pry open the unlocked door, despite the dirt from the ravine that was blocking it.
“I had to move some dirt around, but was able to get the door open a bit, enough to grab her,” Trefry said. “At first it was a struggle. Luckily, I pulled her out. She was conscious, but I noticed a little blood. Me and another gentleman moved her about 30 feet away to get her away from the fire, so when it took off it wouldn’t affect her. I checked the back seat to make sure there was no one else inside the vehicle. Then there were a couple of nurses who showed up, along with State Police, and they started rendering aid to her.”
Trefry is used to helping people escape from the wreckage of car crashes while at work, but this was the first time he did so while off-duty.
“I’ve never been in a situation like this,” he said. “It definitely wasn’t on my Sunday morning bingo card. I just happened to be in the right place at the right time.”
Trefry was able to carefully cross all lanes of the highway to get to the woman but had to signal to drivers to brake for him.
“It was definitely crowded. People were slowing down for the accident and looking.” he said. “I put my hand up to get people to stop, and I was able to slowly make my way over. I climbed over the guardrail and did the same thing on the northbound side.”
Any one of his colleagues from the Whitman Fire Department or their fellow firefighters from around the state would have done the same, Lt. Trefry said.
“It’s what anyone in the fire service in Massachusetts would have done,” said Trefry, who became a full-time firefighter in 2012. “I’d like to think we all would have done the same thing.”
The Raynham Fire Department also responded to the crash and quicky extinguished the fire. The Raynham Fire Department stated that the vehicle rolled over, before catching fire amid the vegetation on the side of the highway.
The vehicle operator was then transported by a Raynham Fire Department ambulance to Good Samaritan Medical Center in Brockton in stable condition.
“I’m hoping she’s alright,” Lt. Trefry said.
Without realizing a fellow firefighter was involved, the Raynham Fire Department thanked the good Samaritans who helped the woman escape from the burning SUV.
“Their actions certainly made a difference and may very well have saved the driver’s life,” said Raynham Fire Chief Bryan LaCivita.
After the rescue, Massachusetts State Police stopped traffic to allow Lt. Trefry to return to his vehicle on the other side of the highway.
Whitman’s Chief Clancy said the episode is an example of how the members his department are dedicated to aiding the public at any time – on duty or off.
“I’m very proud of Lt. Trefry, as I am of all our firefighters,” Clancy said.