REAL PEOPLE/Superhero Great-Grandpa
A Dramatic Rescue
When a car caught fire with kids inside, Carl Noble ran to help
ONE AFTERNOON last winter, I was waiting in the parking lot of the elementary school to pick up my great-granddaughter, when I happened to notice smoke coming from the engine compartment of a parked vehicle. All of a sudden, a big ball of smoke shot out from under the hood. Then I saw flames. Something in my mind told me, Someone’s in there. You gotta help. So, I took off running.
I couldn’t see inside the car because of the smoke and the tinted windows. The back door was locked. I yelled, “Is anyone in here?” That’s when I saw a tiny hand on the window. I decided to try the front passenger door. Thankfully, it was unlocked. A little boy started coming forward from between the bucket seats. He was scared, but I lifted him up and put him on the ground. Then another little boy started crawling out. I grabbed him and asked, “Is anybody else back there?” Now a little girl appears between the seats. Just as I grab her, the car explodes and knocks us back. The fire burned the ends off the little girl’s braids, but she was otherwise OK.
The fire turned out to be a freak occurrence—a spontaneous mechanical failure. That’s why they tell us to never leave kids alone in a car, even just for a minute.
For 37 years I worked at a hospital, in the engineering department. I thought my days of fixing troubles were over. But then something like this happens, and you jump into action. Life can change on you in a second. I’m just happy I was there to help. —As told to David Hochman
Retired hospital worker Carl Noble, 71, lives in Port St. Lucie, Florida.