On an overnight shift with an extra hour built in, Hopkinsville Police made the most of it by becoming heroes when several officers worked to pull a local man from a burning car and saved his life.

Sgt. John Thompson says the incident happened around 1:20 on North Drive at the bridge in front of BB&T. 33-year old Martez Nelson of Hopkinsville was southbound when he ran off the side of the road, hit a sign and over-corrected before slamming into the bridge—which caused his vehicle to catch fire.

Sgt. Thompson explained what happened next when Officer Federico Rodriguez and several other members of the department arrived within seconds.

The efforts of Officer Rodriguez, Sgt. Thompson, Officer Jason Brent, Officer Jonathan Sholar and Officer Jason Sears saved the life of Nelson, who was taken to Jennie Stuart before being flown to Vanderbilt University Medical Center where he is being treated for burns to approximately 40-percernt of his body.

Sgt. Thompson said the moment was a “gut check” for the officers involved and they all passed the test.

Officer Rodriguez was burned in a couple of places on his arms while pulling the victim out of the car window, but Sgt. Thompson said the injuries were not serious. Nelson had an Oak Grove driver’s license, but Sgt. Thompson said he had recently moved to Hopkinsville.

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11/04/2012/am