On September 11, Weldon police Chief Christopher Davis will present commendations to Lieutenant Lloyd Melton and Corporal Shawn McKimmey for pulling a Roanoke Rapids man away from a burning car.

The presentations will be made during the Weldon town board meeting.

In a written report to the chief, Melton said that on August 11 shortly before 11:30 p.m. officers were dispatched to Country Club Road for a wreck call, with additional information received that the vehicle was on fire and a person was possibly trapped inside.

Melton and McKimmey arrived to find the vehicle engulfed, the flames close to breaching its fire wall, the officers said during an interview Monday.

The man was partially out of the vehicle, but his legs remained pinned as the vehicle continued to burn, the officers said. The victim was calling for help and Melton and McKimmey pulled him away from the car.

The victim sustained broken bones, lacerations and third-degree burns. The crash is still being investigated.

McKimmey arrived first and Melton was about five seconds behind him. “It became clear someone was in the car because we could hear someone screaming but we still couldn’t find him,” Melton said at town hall.

The officers checked to see if anyone had been ejected, Melton said. “I could hear someone screaming and in a split second I saw an arm go up from the driver’s side.”

McKimmey said, “From what I could see from the driver’s side, it was just a mess. So I’m thinking if there was somebody in the car, it would be more likely I would get them out from that side.”

The flames were getting more intense, Melton said. “We just took a chance. His legs were pinned in the car on the driver’s side. From that point we just decided to start grabbing him and pulling him to get him out of the car.”

Said McKimmey: “I grabbed the right arm. He grabbed the left arm.”

The victim was screaming that his feet were burning. “By the grace of God the way the impact happened, being an accident reconstructionist, if the impact from the tree had been a foot, a foot-and-a-half further back, we’d have never got him out because it would have been pinned closed. Where it was at it was real close to the hinge and that caused the door to rip open which caused him to come out and meet the tree. That’s where the majority of his impact injuries came from.”

McKimmey said in speaking to the victim’s mother, the third-degree burn injury was just on his right foot at the bottom.

While investigation into the crash is still ongoing, Melton said the best current information is that the car left the road and then there was possibly an over-correction in which the vehicle went back to the other side.

For the officers, it’s not about the recognition of their actions. 

“It’s an everyday thing,” said Melton. “It’s another human being helping another human being. It doesn’t matter what our position is — it’s just that when we are there, it’s to render aid to anybody who needs it. It doesn’t matter. This is not the first time when I had to do something in my life. I definitely do not seek that recognition. I just want to be able to know that I did everything I could to help another human.”

McKimmey said the first attempt to get the victim out was unsuccessful. “We just re-angled, changed our pull direction and by luck and the grace of God he came free. We just got him as far away from the vehicle.”

Soon after the officers pulled the man away from the vehicle, the fire breached the cabin and went very quickly to near the trunk when firefighters got water on it, McKimmey said. “I’m just glad we got him out.”

Weldon fire Chief Michael Sumner said the fire was in the vehicle’s engine compartment. “As soon as they pulled him out it wasn’t 10 to 15 seconds that where he was laying his legs was fully involved.”

Sumner said it was an awesome job by the officers. “On the fire department side that’s what we train to do in those situations. While we have gear to help protect us, they don’t. They put their life on the line to pull the person out. I’m proud of the police department we have in Weldon.”

Weldon Mayor Hugh Credle said, “I understand they don’t look for any heroic accolades. It’s what they do. They’re trained professionals and I’m proud to have them on the force here. Chief Davis and the fire department work hand in hand together and I just think it was fortunate that they were able to retrieve the individual from the fire before it became engulfed.”

Said Credle: “They may not say it but I’ll say it: It takes a brave person and a person dedicated to their job to put their own life on the line and do such a heroic act and don’t even think about it. What they were thinking is a person first and let’s get them out. They’re trained professionals and I’m proud to have them on the force here in Weldon.”

Davis commended the fire department as well as the officers. “From what I understand the fire was starting to get on the trees. They did a great job putting it out before it caused any more property damage.”

The police chief said the actions of Melton and McKimmey means “they’re willing to go above and beyond what a normal person would normally do. They’re the ones that make me look good. It’s not the other way around. I may get the attaboys but it’s because of them.”