A Palatine police officer likely saved the life of a 48-year-old man by pulling his burning car from a building on Friday morning.
According to authorities, the man was driving southbound through a parking lot at the Deer Grove Centre when his vehicle drove into the brick wall of a vacant business, located between a Petco and a Hobby Lobby. The vehicle then caught on fire, with the driver trapped inside.
Unable to reach the victim, a quick-thinking police officer borrowed a tow strap from a witness at the scene and used his squad car to pull the burning car from the side of the building.
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Rescue workers were then able to free the man from the burning vehicle, and he was transported to Lutheran General Hospital in Park Ridge for treatment.
Witnesses say that the Hobby Lobby was evacuated during the incident, but no one was injured inside the store.
The cause of the crash remains under investigation, and further details will be released at a later time by Palatine police.
