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Two local California Highway Patrol officers are being hailed heroes for pulling a badly injured woman out of her car as it caught fire following a crash in a rural area of Livermore over the weekend.
Capt. Christopher Sherry, commander of the CHP’s Dublin office, lauded officers Samuel Garcia-Zepeda and Luis Toris for their “bravery and willingness to risk their lives” during the incident early Sunday morning.
“I am very proud of Officers Garcia-Zepeda and Toris,” Sherry said in a statement. “These officers lived up to their sworn oaths as public protectors. Had it not been for officers Garcia-Zepeda and Toris, the driver would have been trapped in her burning vehicle, possibly dying. They are true heroes.”
The situation unfolded around 1 a.m. Sunday when the officers were dispatched to investigate a reported solo-vehicle crash on Raymond Road at Dagnino Road, located north of Springtown in Livermore.
When they arrived the officers found a vehicle had run off the road and down a dirt embankment, and the engine was on fire with flames coming up from under the hood, according to CHP Officer Tyler Hahn.
As the vegetation under the vehicle started to catch fire, Garcia-Zepeda approached and found a woman trapped in the driver’s seat. The only occupant of the vehicle, the woman was intoxicated, sustained major injuries in the crash and was unable to get out, Hahn said.
“Officer Garcia-Zepeda jumped into action and pulled the woman out of the vehicle,” Hahn said. “He dragged the woman to safety as his partner, Officer Toris, attempted to extinguish the fire with a fire extinguisher.”
Toris then helped Garcia-Zepeda carry the woman up the dirt embankment and laid her down safely away from the burning vehicle, according to Hahn. Livermore-Pleasanton Fire Department personnel arrived to address the fire, and paramedics transported the injured woman to Eden Medical Center in Castro Valley for treatment.
Garcia-Zepeda was also hurt, injuring his ankle during the rescue, according to Hahn.
The woman, whose identity was not released, is expected to face DUI-related charges.
