Nick Dorken, a firefighter from Kitchener, is being called a hero after pulling a man from a burning vehicle while on vacation in Fort Myers, Florida.
The car had crashed into a pole at an intersection and then burst into flames.
Dorken's wife Kim says the family came across the car fire early Thursday morning as they were leaving Disney World in their rental car.
"I looked back over my shoulder and noticed that I could clearly see somebody sitting in there. I could see his face. I could see he was unconscious."
She says Nick ran to the vehicle, which was almost fully engulfed in flames and emerged with the victim.
The man had been sitting in the grass, though he was still in his car, because the bottom of the vehicle had been ripped off in the crash.
Nick says it was perfect timing "Almost like in the movies…definitely under a minute and it would have been a different outcome."
No one else was in the car, so Nick cared for the man until EMS arrived. The man was then taken to hospital with minor burns, cuts and bruises. There were no other injuries.
Officials on scene are surprised the man got out alive, saying if he had been rescued a minute later, it might have been too late.
Dorken has been a firefighter in Kitchener for six years and his colleagues say they're very proud of his actions.
Tim Beckett, Kitchener's fire chief, says "It doesn't matter who you are or where you're from we're going to serve you the best we can."
Police in Florida are still investigating the cause of the crash and haven't released the victim's name.
Kim says "[Nick's] always been my hero, I guess he can be somebody else's too."
The couple's two-year-old daughter slept through the whole thing.
