Woman speaks out after South Carolina deputy rescues her from burning car: 'Guardian angel'
A woman is speaking out after being rescued from a burning car by a South Carolina deputy responding to the scene.
Carletta Bush said she was driving from Georgia to North Carolina when she hit a guardrail, rolled over and then blacked out, regaining consciousness trapped in her car, she told ABC News affiliate WSOC in Charlotte.
Body camera footage from the May 23 incident shows Chester County Sheriff’s Deputy Daniel Threatt seeing the burning car and sprinting towards it while screaming, "Ma'am can you hear me?"
The footage shows Threatt approaching the car and making contact with Bush before eventually pulling her out of the burning car by cutting her free from her seatbelt.
"I said he had to be my guardian angel," Bush told WSOC.
Bush said she was driving to Charlotte to celebrate finishing radiation treatment for breast cancer when she lost control of the car on a rainy stretch of highway.
"I just remember, bam, after that I don't remember anything else. When my eyes just kind of popped open, it was like something in the movies," she said.
She said her car flipped nine times before finishing upside down and on fire, with her stuck inside.
"I was just like trying to unlatch my seat button, I couldn't get it open and all of a sudden I heard a little voice say, 'Ma'am, ma'am, are you okay?'" she said.
"If it wasn't for him, I wouldn't have made it," Bush said.
Bush has since returned to Georgia where she is continuing cancer treatment and recovering from a broken collarbone.
A message from the sheriff's office said, "Deputy Threatt didn't hesitate, he immediately jumped into action, risking his own safety to pull the driver from the burning vehicle."
The sheriff's office added, "Additional first responders quickly arrived to extinguish the fire and provide medical care."
Every day, the men and women of law enforcement face the unknown and run toward danger. Thank you, Deputy Threatt, for your selfless service, quick thinking, and bravery," the message finished.
