A man is in critical condition with severe burns after Bridgeport police officers and Wise County sheriff's deputies dragged him from a fully engulfed vehicle deep in the woods near Lake Bridgeport last Tuesday. Body camera video shows officers battling triple-digit heat, dense brush, and a small explosion as they raced down a steep embankment to reach him before the flames closed in.
The response began as a routine call. Bridgeport Police Sergeant Mason Anderson and Officer Hill were dispatched around 5:30 p.m. to help Wise County Sheriff's Sergeant Kenny Moran check out a suspicious vehicle report in the 3200 block of Farm Road 2952, according to the Wise County Messenger. Deputies had originally responded to a report of a vehicle circling a caretaker's house, per the Wise County Sheriff's Office, before witnesses said the driver operated the vehicle erratically and pushed deeper into the woods near a Methodist church campsite in Bridgeport.
What officers found instead of a parked car was smoke rising from the trees. As the Messenger's account describes it, deputies launched a drone to search the heavily wooded area and then ran toward the burning vehicle down the steep, wooded terrain, encountering thick smoke, intense flames, and a small explosion along the way.
An Officer's Warning as Flames Closed In
Body camera footage captured Sergeant Anderson turning to Sergeant Moran as the fire grew and smoke thickened around them, telling him, “Moran, we're going to get trapped, brother,” according to the same account from the Messenger. Despite the danger, officers pressed on with the extrication rather than pull back.
Anderson ultimately used his baton to shatter the driver-side window of the burning car to reach the trapped man, the outlet reports, with the video showing officers coaxing him to crawl free moments later. Eric Debus, speaking about the incident, said the man resisted first responders' efforts to pull him from the vehicle and that deputies would not give up despite that resistance. Debus said the deputies' only goal was to save the man's life whether he wanted to be saved or not, and he added that the scene was actually worse in person than it appeared on video, according to FOX 28. He described the rescue as an example of the lengths first responders will go to protect a life.
Driver Flown to Hospital in Critical Condition
The rescued man was flown by medical helicopter from the scene, WSYX3 reported, and was later listed in critical condition with severe burn injuries after being taken to a Dallas-Fort Worth hospital, according to FOX 26 Houston. The first deputies on scene also experienced difficulty breathing and possible smoke inhalation and were taken to the hospital as a precaution.
The rescue drew personnel from six separate emergency agencies, according to the Wise County Sheriff's Office: the Wise County Sheriff's Office, Bridgeport Police Department, Texas Department of Public Safety, Wise County Constables, local fire departments, and Wise County EMS. The agency released joint drone and body camera footage documenting the coordinated effort afterward.
Extreme Heat Fuels a Countywide Burn Ban
The rescue unfolded amid brutal North Texas heat, with afternoon temperatures reaching 100 to 102 degrees Fahrenheit and low humidity across the metroplex that day, per CBS News. Days later, on August 10, Wise County Commissioners enacted a mandatory 90-day outdoor burn ban across the county, citing the persistent triple-digit heat and dry conditions that had already sparked multiple wildland fires; violations of the ban carry fines up to $500, the Wise County Messenger noted in a separate update.
Vehicle fires that occur off-road or in collisions are disproportionately deadly compared to other highway fires. National Fire Protection Association research cited by EHS Today found that while vehicle collisions and off-road overturns make up just 3% of highway vehicle fires, they account for 57% to 58% of all vehicle fire deaths, largely because impact forces breach fuel systems and trap occupants. Separately, NFPA data published in 2024 estimates that vehicle fires cause roughly 211,500 incidents, 510 civilian deaths, and 1,070 civilian injuries nationwide each year.
This is not the first time a vehicle fire has spiraled into a larger emergency in Wise County. In August 2022, a wrong-way crash ignited a commercial vehicle fire that spread into an 80-acre grass fire along U.S. 287, requiring more than 50 emergency units from over a dozen agencies to bring under control, according to WFAA. In that incident, four law enforcement officers rescued the driver before power lines and surrounding fields caught fire as well.
The identity of the man rescued near Lake Bridgeport, what caused the fire to ignite, and whether he will face any charges related to the erratic driving reported by witnesses all remain unresolved questions as the investigation continues.
