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Video: Va. State Police trooper rescues man from burning Tesla

The doors would not unlock, so Sgt. S. Page had to break a window and cut through an airbag to pull the injured driver to safety

By Samuel B. Parker
Richmond Times-Dispatch, Va.

CAROLINE COUNTY, Va. — Virginia State Police say a state trooper and multiple civilians on Friday saved a Maryland man from a burning vehicle in Caroline County.

Foday Kanu, 34, of Upper Marlboro, Maryland, was driving a 2024 Tesla Model Y northbound on Interstate 95 early Friday morning when he veered off the road and struck a tree, police said. Sgt. S. Page, who was also traveling on I-95, stopped to check on the driver just as the Tesla burst into flames.

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Police said the vehicle doors were locked and could not be opened, forcing Page to break a window, cut the airbag and pull Kanu to safety. Multiple motorists also stopped to assist Page, police said.

Kanu was transported to a local hospital with serious injuries that are not considered life-threatening.

Police said road conditions from winter weather are considered a factor in the crash, which remains under investigation.

Page, in an interview after the fact, said he went back to the vehicle afterward to ensure that there was “nobody else in the car.”

“I think it literally happened seconds before I pulled up,” he said. “If I hadn’t gone northbound, I don’t know if anybody else was going to stop.”

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