Good Samaritans Save Child From Deadly NJ Car Fire

A young boy was pulled from the wreckage of a car crash and fire along I-295 in Salem County, N.J. that left three adults dead Monday night.

The Honda sedan caught fire around 6:15 after 24-year-old Manuel Marshal of Cheverly, Md. lost control, ran down the center median and crashed into a tree on southbound I-295 near mile marker 8 in Penns Grove, according to New Jersey State Police.

Richard Vaughn and John-Paul Parkinson were each driving by at the time of the wreck and stopped. They were able to pull the 9-year-old boy from the wreckage, cops said.

The unidentified boy was taken to Crozier-Chester Medical Center where he was in stable condition Monday night, authorities said.

The boy wouldn't have made it out of the crash without the help of the two Good Samaritans, cops said.

The two rescuers didn’t even know each other, according to Parkinson.

"Your mind just goes blank… I couldn’t even call 9-1-1," said Parkinson. "I was just so caught up in the moment trying to get the flames out.

"I was knocking the flames down to a point where the gentlemen -- I don’t know his name -- he was able to grab the child to safety."

The other three people in the car, Marshal, Jessie Jones, 27, of Landham, Md. and Arthur Briscoe (age unknown) were trapped and died.

It is unclear what caused Marshal to lose control.

All lanes were closed following the fire but one lane started getting by around 8:15.


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