Watch N.C. Police Officer Save Unconscious Driver Before Semi Explodes

A North Carolina police officer pulled an unconscious driver from a burning tractor-trailer last month, a dramatic rescue that was captured by the officer's body camera.

The incident happened just before 9 p.m. Aug. 8 when Salisbury Police Lt. Corey Brooks saw a tractor-trailer slam into a retaining wall and catch fire, the department stated in a release. Brooks was able to reach the cab quickly, and he found the driver unconscious behind the wheel.

"This was one of the scariest moments of my career, and at the time of the driver in the truck and me trying to get him out because, at first, I couldn’t move him,” Brooks told Queen City News. "I was thinking, ‘OK, either I’m going to die here with him, or I’ve got to get him out of this truck.'"

Finally getting off the seat belt, Brooks was able to pull the driver out of the cab, and a bystander helped him get the driver off the roadway and away from the burning vehicle. Once they were to safety, the tractor-trailer exploded.

“All of a sudden, we kept hearing a popping sound, and she was like, ‘Is that a popping sound?’ And I said, ‘Yeah,’ and one semi goes by, and a second later, the truck explodes,” said Brooks.

The driver regained consciousness as medics arrived, and he was rushed to the hospital. Brooks was not injured during the incident.

“There’s no way I could just keep going or just radio in or wait for the fire department to get there, just watch him burn there in the truck,” Brooks said. “I don’t think I could mentally or psychologically cope with that.”

Since the rescue, Brooks—who has 24 years of law enforcement experience—has been in contact with the driver, who has continued to recover from the crash.

“He says, ‘Now I get to see my kids again,'” Brooks said. “I gave him a big hug, and we are like, ‘We’re going to be connected forever.'”