Good Samaritans rescue 83-year-old from fiery crash in East Bridgewate

An 83-year-old woman was rescued from a fiery car crash in East Bridgewater, thanks to the help of some good Samaritans.

On Saturday, just before noon, a car struck a utility pole then hit a tree, causing a fire. Before first responders could get there, some bystanders stepped in.

Matthew Donlin was on his way to work when he sprang into action. He removed the woman’s seatbelt and got her out of the car.

“It was, BANG!,” said Donlin. “And the airbags were blowing up… The flames were coming in, so when you’re trying to go around the woman to get that seatbelt and follow it down was the tough part.”

Dina Hartsgrove, an off-duty nurse, was also there. She heard the crash happen outside her house.

“I checked for a pulse, there was no pulse,” said Hartsgrove. “I started doing CPR on her.”

“The fire was really big at that point,” Hartsgrove continued. “We were hearing little explosions and we were getting nervous.”

Hartsgrove and Donlin pulled the woman from the flames with a few others. Hartsgrove continued CPR until emergency crews arrived.

“We want them to get all the praise they can get,” said Chris Uhlman, the son of the woman in the crash. “Ugh, oh man. We are just so grateful.”

Uhlman says his mother, Gail, is fighting for her life in the hospital.

“My mother’s still in rough shape,” Uhlman said. “It’s touch-and-go. But we want to thank them for the extra time. They saved time for us. They gained us time that we’d never have and an image we could never get out of our head.”

It’s the gift of time, and the hope of survival, that makes these good Samaritans say made them want to help.

“I hope that somebody would do that for my family,” said Hartsgrove.

“That’s the beauty of it, you know?” said Donlin. “Um, this world, I think we can use a little more compassion, a little more empathy for each other.”