A 28-year-old woman was rescued from a car that caught fire after it crashed into a traffic signal control cabinet on a sidewalk in Bell Gardens, authorities said Sunday.
Officers were patrolling the 6000 block of Gage Avenue around 4:55 a.m. Saturday when they came across the wreckage of a vehicle with extensive front-end damage. According to Lt. Efren Aguirre of the Bell Gardens Police Department, the vehicle came into direct contact with the exposed electrical wires of the traffic control cabinet.
“While the guards were trying to remove the driver, the engine compartment caught fire and the fire grew in size within seconds,” Aguirre said. “Officers used fire extinguishers to extinguish the flames and attempted to remove the unconscious woman from the vehicle as smoke and fire entered the interior of the vehicle.
“As the fire grew, officers continued to free the driver,” Aguirre continued. “After a few minutes they were finally able to pull him to safety.”
Emergency personnel of the Los Angeles County Fire Department, who arrived at the scene, treated the woman with serious burns on her legs and took her to the hospital for further treatment.
Bell Gardens police urged anyone with information about the crash to call 562-806-7600.