A man was startled awake by a fiery car crash in his front yard in La Mesa. Instead of calling police, he jumped into action, pulling a passenger from the burning car.
The accident happened just before 1 a.m. on Baltimore Drive near Laport Street.
Kerry Campbell wasted no time getting his front yard, ordinarily the envy of the neighborhood, back in order. Fourteen hours earlier, it looked more like a bonfire.
"My wife and I hear a loud boom," Campbell said. "I used one fire extinguisher and realized it wasn't going to do anything. It felt like it lasted five minutes. Looking at the video, it lasted less than two minutes. I went around to the driver's side door and pried it open and just pulled her out."
Get top local stories in San Diego delivered to you every morning. >Sign up for NBC San Diego's News Headlines newsletter.
She is the 25-year-old passenger of an incinerated Toyota Scion that crashed in front of Campbell's home. Police say her injuries were not life threatening. She may have Campbell to thank for that.
"She was awake but not verbal," Campbell said. "Clearly injured, but I didn't see any blood."
Neighbor Elizabeth Munn was terrified the fire might spread to her home next door.
Local
"I was panicking because I have pets," Munn said. "I was running in, trying to find them all. The car was almost completely engulfed in flames at that point. It was really scary. In the movies, you see cars on fire that go kaboom."
Campbell not only pulled the young passenger from her burning car. His doorbell camera video shows that Campbell did it in boxers and bare feet — to his wife's dismay.
"Kerry, get out of there," his wife is heard saying in the recording.
How the car got there is a tale with many twists. Witnesses say the Scion was northbound on Baltimore Drive. Some 100 yards from Campbell's house, the driver lost control, crossed the median and then collided with an evergreen tree in the middle of the road.
The force of the collision was so great, car glass was sprayed on the roof of the home across the street. The Scion barreled the wrong way toward Campbell's front yard, finally coming to rest after crashing into his palm tree.
"A little emotional afterwards because my wife and kids were inside, and it could have ended up a lot worse," Campbell said. "I feel good. I feel fortunate."
Campbell says his actions were reflexive. He wasn't thinking about it. He just did what needed to be done. He's had no formal fire training. He was trained as a Marine 26 years ago, and he credits that training for being able to respond when needed.
La Mesa police say the 20-year-old driver remained at the scene and was arrested for driving under the influence.
