'We needed to get him away from the car': How two women saved a man from a burning Corvette in Cambridge, Ont.

What started off as a normal Saturday morning quickly turned into the opposite for two women in Cambridge, Ont.

Cathy Beacham and Carrie McCollum, strangers to each other, were driving in their separate vehicles around 11 a.m. at the intersection of Cedar Street and Southwood Drive.

A Corvette on fire in Cambridge along Cedar Street on June 17. (Doug Boyd)

Beacham was about to turn onto Cedar Street on her way to the bank when something caught her eye from a Corvette stopped at the red light.

“When I was turning, I could see there were flames underneath the car,” Beacham said.

Inside, she saw a man.

“I could see him trying to get out. He sort of had one leg out, so I turned the corner, parked my vehicle and went over,” she explained.

“He was an older gentleman, and he was having some difficulty.”

A Corvette can be seen engulfed in flames on Cedar Street in Cambridge on Saturday. (Doug Boyd)

Without a second thought, she went to help him.

“When I was going over, the woman behind him in the vehicle, she was coming over too,” Beacham explained.

That woman was Carrie McCollum.

“I could smell strong gasoline fumes. I was thinking, ‘is it my car? What’s going on,’” McCollum said.

“We stopped at the lights, and there was a Corvette in front of me, and underneath the car, it just lit up in flames.”

Firefighters work to extinguish a Corvette on fire in Cambridge on June 17, 2023.(Doug Boyd)

McCollum said no one was getting out of the car at first, so she honked her horn to try and alert the driver.

“Then the door was slowly opening, and he was slowly trying to get out when I realized there might be an issue,” McCollum explained.

“I ran over and asked him if he wanted help. He did.”

Firefighters at the scene of a corvette fire in Cambridge on June 17, 2023. (Courtesy: Brad Hillier)

Together, Beacham and McCollum helped the man from the car and walked him to the sidewalk, where he could lean against a nearby telephone pole.

“I noticed he had an oxygen [tube around his nose] and so I looked at the passenger seat, and there was his oxygen tank. So, I went into the car, and grabbed the tank and pulled the power supply out,” McCollum explained.

“Partly because it’s dangerous, and also some people can’t be without oxygen for very long.”

She said she had a family friend who couldn’t go long without oxygen, which is what prompted her to grab the tank.

When the women were taking the man from the car, Beacham said there were flames starting to make their way to the hood.

“Moreso sort of on the passenger side,” Beacham said.

“Once we got him out and we got him across the road, that’s when it really engulfed in flames.”

The aftermath of a Corvette fire in Cambridge on June 17, 2023. (Courtesy: Brad Hillier)

Beacham moved her car away from the fire. They moved the man from the sidewalk, and into her car until more help arrived.

Another bystander called 911. The fire department and police showed up. Firefighters put the fire out, but the car was destroyed.

Reflecting on it now, McCollum said she gets emotional thinking about the man whom they helped.

“It was a beautiful car, and because he was safe and fine, my heart went out to him and the fact that his treasure, he was watching burn. Just so many emotions,” she said.

Beacham said he was upset about losing his car, but his gratitude for their help was evident.

“He continued to thank us and say, ‘not many people would do this,’” Beacham said.

“We just kept saying, ‘we would hope that most people would do that if they saw there was a need.’”

A few days following the incident, both women said they’d do it again.

The spot where a Corvette burst into flames in Cambridge, Ont. (Stefanie Davis/CTV News Kitchener)

“When I saw the flames, and I saw him needing some assistance to get out of his vehicle, it was just a reaction,” Beacham said.

“All that went through my mind was that we needed to get him away from the car. I had visions of that car exploding.”

McCollum said it was adrenaline pushing her through the situation.

“I think if anybody was right there they would have done it. You just go,” McCollum said.

“I didn’t even get his name, but I hope he’s doing okay, and I really feel for him.”

INVESTIGATION ONGOING

The Cambridge Fire Department confirmed the Corvette driver did not sustain any injuries.

An investigation determined it was an engine fire.

“We don’t have any more particulars into the depths of the engine, but we can say that it did start in the front compartment of the engine of this vehicle,” John Percy, captain of fire prevention with Cambridge Fire Department, said.

He said it’s important for the public to call 911 immediately in any emergent situation like this.

“We are very grateful for the assistance of these two females that were in the area of the fire of the time. We do appreciate all their efforts and their actions,” Percy said.

“We just need to remind everyone to please, first and foremost, call 911 and emergency services. Do not put yourself in danger.”