LARCHWOOD, IA & LENNOX, S.D. (KELO) — A Lennox police officer is garnering praise after pulling people from a car that was engulfed in flames in northwest Iowa.
There are still burn marks and some debris left behind in a ditch near Larchwood, Iowa after the crash last Thursday.
A Ford Raptor was driving northbound on Beech Avenue, but it failed to stop at a stop sign, striking the passenger side of a Chevy Traverse driving on 140th Street.
Ismael Small, who is a part-time officer for the Lennox Police Department, was off-duty when he came across the scene.
“When I approached the intersection, I saw the SUV in a ditch, and I saw the pickup truck upside down, and I heard some screaming,” Small said.
With no time to think, Small ran over to the Chevy.
“I went over and saw there were four people inside the car, saw some injuries, saw some blood, saw some smoke, and the passenger side door was pretty much mangled. I went around the driver’s side, and that’s when I saw the smoke and the fire, and I rapidly got everybody out of the car,” Small said.
Then, Small helped a person from the truck.
“I looked at it as that was my own family member. These people need help, and I just let my training take over,” Smal said.
His actions impressed Lyon County Sheriff Stewart Vander Stoep.
“He pulled all four of them out and then he didn’t stop and say, ‘Okay, my job is done.’ No, there was somebody else hurt in that pickup that was on its side. He thought maybe there would be some head injuries or neck injuries, so he ended up helping that person until rescue arrived and stayed until basically the scene was cleared,” Vander Stoep said.
To Vander Stoep, there is only one word that can be used to describe Officer Small.
“A hero. That is what a true hero is, is when they just jump into action without giving it much thought,” Vander Stoep said.
There were six people injured in the crash. One was airlifted and the other five were transported by ambulance to Sioux Falls hospitals. To recognize Officer Small’s heroism, Sheriff Vander Stoep plans to invite him to the Lyon County Sheriff’s Office to reward him with a plaque.
