HOLLY, Mich. (AP) — Dane Gardner has some aches and pains
but is alive after his younger brother, Dillon Gardner, pulled him from
a fiery car crash and then carried him a half-mile for help.
"I’m
glad he was with me, otherwise I wouldn’t be here," Dane said from his
home in Holly, where the 17-year-old is recuperating.
The accident happened as the Holly High School students were coming home from playing
basketball one morning last week.
"I hit a slick spot, and the next thing I know my car goes completely
sideways," Dane said.
He attempted to correct the vehicle but lost control and crashed into a tree.
"I kind of passed out," Dane said.
Dillon, 15, was reading a magazine in the passenger seat.
"I didn’t know what was happening," he said. "I didn’t see it
coming."
Dillon gathered himself and had to kick his door open to get out.
"I looked to my left and he was knocked out and he was bleeding," Dillon
said. "I thought he was dead at first."
Fire
began kicking up from the vehicle as Dillon set about pulling his
brother, who had awakened and began screaming in pain from his wounds.
"Flames were coming over the windshield, and the whole inside of the car was
filled with smoke," Dillon said.
Unable
to find the cell phone, Dillon was able to free his brother by tearing
out the passenger-side console to get him out of the car.
The boys said they lost their shoes in the accident, and Dillon was forced to carry
his brother for a half-mile barefoot.
A passing salt truck driver spotted the bloody teens and picked them up.
Dane was in surgery for two hours, getting 30 stitches to his shoulder and 19 to his
face.
He won’t be playing basketball anytime soon, but should be back at school after the
holiday season.
The
tow truck driver who hauled the car away mentioned it took more than
1,000 gallons of water to get the fire under control, said the boys’
mother, Danna Gardner.
The car is just a shell now, and Dillon has been a little tired from all the
attention he’s been getting, she said.
Danna, however, is at no loss for words when it comes to describing the bravery her
boys showed.
"I’m
so very proud of them both," she said. "They were so concerned about
the stuff in the car, and I don’t care what was in the car. That stuff
can be replaced."
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Information from: The Oakland Press, http://www.theoaklandpress.com
Copyright 2012 The Associated Press.