Newly released video captures the incredible moment a Brooklyn resident lifted a minivan that had flipped over after a series of fiery crashes, with a bottle of alcohol next to the rescued driver, who now faces DUI charges.
Footage of the horrific crash in Brownsville on Saturday shows about a dozen people rushing to help lift a wrecked van that crashed violently and flipped over while fleeing the scene of another accident, striking a 26-year-old woman and a 3-year-old girl who were in a crosswalk.
The group rushed in after hearing a crash that “sounded like a bomb going off.” one neighbor told ABC7.
“Let's go!” one man yells, as at least a dozen people stand shoulder to shoulder and try to pull the car from the side to overturn it, while others yell “Push, push, push!”
The crowd eventually managed to right the vehicle and rescue the trapped driver, whom police identified as Olubunmi Awolui, 61.
“The car that hit it was upside down and everybody was coming and trying to turn it over,” said Eudas James, the owner of both cars that were hit when the minivan flipped over. He told CBS.
“[The driver] “There was blood coming out of his mouth. There was blood on the road. It was kind of scary to see someone being held down and crushed.”
James said he saw a bottle of cognac on the sidewalk near the scene of the crash and a bottle of alcohol inside the car.
Another witness, Shanique Fox, told CBS that a liquor bottle fell out of the car when firefighters opened the door.
Police said Awolui crashed into two vehicles in another location before striking a 26-year-old woman and a three-year-old girl in a crosswalk. Both were taken to hospital and are expected to make a full recovery.
Police said Awolui was charged with DUI, reckless driving and leaving the scene of an accident.
