Meet the man who rescued a driver as their vehicle went up in flames
By Aaron Cantrell
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RUTHERFORD COUNTY, Tennessee (WTVF) — A Bedford County man is being praised by his community for pulling a driver to safety after a fiery crash along I-24 East over the weekend.
Mikel Lessary was heading home when he spotted a vehicle on fire in the woods near the 74-mile marker in Rutherford County. Authorities said the car had left the roadway and ignited after crashing.
“I don’t see anyone as I was passing the vehicle, and that’s what made me stop initially,” Lessary said. “I thought someone was inside the vehicle and really hurt.”
Lessary said he didn’t hesitate. He pulled over and ran toward the smoke.
“As I’m running towards the vehicle, I see the older man near it…and he collapsed to the ground, so I ran to him,” he said.
Lessary said the driver was severely injured and struggling to stay conscious. Then he heard a loud boom from the burning vehicle — a sign they needed to move farther away.
“I’m telling him, ‘I need you to focus on me. I need you awake. Don’t close your eyes. Is there anything hurting?’” Lessary recalled. “He was telling me his chest was hurting.”
Moments later, a sheriff’s deputy arrived to help pull the man farther from the car as it continued to make explosive sounds.
“She ran towards us to make sure he was okay, and the car boomed again,” Lessary said. “She said, ‘It’s going to explode. We need to move further. We’re not far enough away.”
First responders eventually extinguished the fire and rushed the driver to the hospital. His condition has not been released.
Community members have been calling Lessary a hero — but he doesn’t see himself that way.
“I don’t see myself as a hero,” he said. “I just see myself as someone who needed help, and I was the person there.”
Lessary said he hopes the driver recovers and wants the chance to reconnect.
“I hope you’re okay, and I would love to connect with you and get to know you,” he said.
The Tennessee Highway Patrol is investigating the crash.
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