--- title: Viral Video: Off Duty Police Officer Rescues Man From Burning Car description: Surveillance video shows the police officer dragging the driver to safety canonical: https://time.com/2871106/watch-off-duty-cop-rescues-man-from-burning-car/ author: TIME Video article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2014-06-13T17:32:06.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-10-01T08:57:30.961Z og:title: Watch: Off-Duty Cop Rescues Man From Burning Car og:description: Surveillance video shows the police officer dragging the driver to safety og:url: https://time.com/2871106/watch-off-duty-cop-rescues-man-from-burning-car/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltbf227c5606fd82ea/6986978c35ba6fce0ec02940/car-fire-1280x720.png?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 1280 og:image:height: 720 og:image:alt: Off-Duty Cop Rescues Man From Burning Car og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: Watch: Off-Duty Cop Rescues Man From Burning Car twitter:description: Surveillance video shows the police officer dragging the driver to safety twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltbf227c5606fd82ea/6986978c35ba6fce0ec02940/car-fire-1280x720.png?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # Watch: Off-Duty Cop Rescues Man From Burning Car > Sponsored content. 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Every edition is assembled by TIME editors rather than generated automatically. ### Sources * TIME Newsletters: [time.com/newsletters](/c/time-nl-brief-2026q3/newsletters?i=40f569b0-f1c8-4059-97d1-81cb5f81a31f&cr=time-nl-brief-2026q3-v1) ## Video: Off-Duty Cop Rescues Man From Burning Car [Watch (HLS stream): Off-Duty Cop Rescues Man From Burning Car](https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/rrzDVulY.m3u8) (1:50)  _Published 2014-06-13. Everyone involved in a terrifying crash at a New York gas station earlier this month is alive, thanks to an off-duty police officer’s bravery and quick thinking. After a man’s medical issue caused him to crash into a gas pump, the officer stepped in._ by [TIME Video](https://time.com/author/time-video/) ## TIME Video Jun 13, 2014 5:32 PM UTC by [TIME Video](https://time.com/author/time-video/) ## TIME Video Jun 13, 2014 5:32 PM UTC Surveillance footage from a White Plains, NY gas station last Tuesday shows a [car crashing into a gas pump](http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/06/12/officer-gas-station-fire%5Fn%5F5485528.html), causing flames to erupt. Fortunately, an off-duty police officer was at the gas station at the same time. John Vescio, a New York State Police senior investigator, sprang to action and pulled the elderly driver from the crashed car to safety. The 69-year-old driver was apparently suffering from a diabetic episode and had been trapped inside his car. Both escaped with minor injuries, and Vescio told _The Journal News_ he planned on [visiting the driver](http://www.lohud.com/story/news/crime/2014/06/10/hero-cop-talks-fiery-hutchinson-gas-station-crash/10294571/) his first day back on duty. ## Transcript Everyone involved in a terrifying crash at a New York gas station earlier this month is alive, thanks to an off- duty police officer's bravery and quick thinking. A car slams into a pump after the driver blacks out. It just so happens the guy filling his tank was an off- duty police officer. John Vescio managed to pull the driver from his car amid the flames. WPIX reports Vescio, a senior State Police investigator, was pumping gas into his unmarked police car when another vehicle came barreling into the gas station and hit one of the pumps. Vescio was injured in the crash when the gas pump fell on top of him, but that didn't stop him from springing into action to save a 69 year old driver, who ABC reports had a medical issue and was trapped unconscious inside the car. From the initial impact it was so fast it wasn't really much of a thinking process, it was more of a reactionary process. I, I don't know if you could say it's just training that kicked in. And that training kicked in just in time. As you can see in surveillance footage taken from the gas station, Vescio dragged the driver to safety seconds before a ball of fire engulfed the area. The Journal News reports once Vescio saved the driver and warned others at the station to stay back, he ran back to his car to retrieve a weapon and ammunition that were still inside. Luckily, all of his ammo was accounted for and didn't explode from the blaze. Four other people were also hurt in the scary incident, but thankfully no one was killed. And now Vescio is being hailed as a hero for his courageous actions. WCBS obtained a news release from the State Police captain who was at the scene. Despite Senior Investigator Vescio's own injuries, he remained focused and committed to saving the life of the operator of that Toyota. If not for his swift response, the situation could have turned much worse. NBC reports and investigation into the crash is still under way. Thanks for watching. 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