Mum thanks strangers who rescued nine-month-old baby from burning car
10 hours agoEleri GriffithsandEmilia Belli,BBC Wales
A mother has thanked two strangers who rescued her nine-month-old baby from her burning car moments before it was engulfed in flames.
Alex McClean from Ebbw Vale, Blaenau Gwent, was driving along a dual carriageway when her car began to smoke and, although she managed to get out, she struggled to open any of the other doors to get her child.
As flames spread, Wesley Beynon and his uncle Marc Willding, stopped to help, with Wesley managing to enter through the driver’s door to free Lilah and Marc pulling her to safety.
The group reunited on Saturday and Alex said Lilah would grow up knowing about the men who saved her life, adding she would never forget their heroism.
Alex, 21, was driving along the A465 at Merthyr Tydfil, at about 13:20 GMT on Wednesday, to take Lilah to a playgroup when her car suddenly began to lose power.
After warning lights came on, she pulled into a lay-by, but moments later smoke filled the car and she rushed to get out.
When she tried to open the rear door behind the passenger seat and the passenger door, neither would open, and in her panic she did not think to try the other side.
“I was panicking trying to open the doors, I thought everything was just locked,” she explained.
Alex said she screamed for help as cars drove past, unsuccessfully trying to smash the window with her keys before calling police as the bonnet began to turn brown.
“I was hysterical and had no idea what was going on.
“I thought I was going to lose her.”
Alex McCleanWelder fabricator Wesley, from Merthyr Tydfil, was heading back to his workshop when he and his uncle noticed the car on fire in the lay-by.
The 39-year-old recalled seeing a woman at the passenger door “clearly in distress”, screaming that her baby was trapped inside, which he described as “horrifying”.
Wesley forced his way in through the driver’s side, unclipped the baby’s harness, with Marc taking the baby out as flames were already visible.
“There were flames visible when we got in the car.
“I could see them through the windscreen. It was pretty terrifying to be honest I’m not going to lie.”
Moments after Lilah was rescued, the vehicle became “erupted” in flames, which could have meant “a different story”.
“Around 30 seconds to a minute later it was engulfed. We were in the right place at the right time,” Wesley said.
“Instinct just took over.”
Marc, 58, from Merthyr Tydfil, added he would never have left the scene until the baby was safely out of the car.
“We would have done it any way possible.”
Alex said baby Lilah was unharmed by the ordeal and was pleased to have the chance to reunite with, and thank the men who saved her baby, presenting them with gifts.
She added: “I’ve never been so appreciative of someone to help me, there were so many other people that didn’t bother stopping.
“If they weren’t there, it would have been so bad – it was such a relief to get her out of the car.”
Alex described the pair as “real lifesavers”.
“I’ll never forget about these, and Lilah’s going to grow up knowing who they are and what happened and how they saved her life.”
Annmarie Thomas
Annmarie Thomas
Wesley said he had felt overwhelmed since the incident, particularly after he and his uncle were hailed as local heroes on social media, adding that his phone had been “red hot”.
He said the recognition had been nice, but stressed they did not act for praise.
Wesley added that knowing they had “made a difference”, not just to the baby’s life but also to Alex and her family, meant a great deal to him.
“I couldn’t bear to imagine what they would have gone through if we didn’t get the baby,” he said.
His advice to other drivers was simple: “Just stop and help.
“You could potentially change somebody’s life as we have just done.”
Additional reporting by Andy Gourlay
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