KENOSHA, Wis. — A Kenosha Sheriff's deputy rescued a suspected drunk driver from a burning car after he crashed into a home over the weekend.
Around 3 a.m. Saturday morning, Kenosha County Deputy Joseph Thomas was near 60th and Pershing when he heard a call for service for a car vs. house. The driver was trapped in the car and both the vehicle and house were on fire.
From the outside, the house doesn't look like it has much damage near the 6400 block of Pershing Boulevard. However, the owners say the damage is worse on the inside of their home.
Hans Vogt and his wife Ruth said it felt like an earthquake early Saturday morning.
"It knocked us out of our beds, and I knew exactly what it was" explained Hans.
The Kenosha County Sheriff’s Department says Ronald Mello-Berrospi drove into the Vogt's home around three Saturday morning.
"Tried to get him out of the car and I couldn't get him out of the car. All the airbags were blowing so I couldn't even see into the car and ran back in and got the fire extinguisher,” Hans said.
Hans said he tried to get the fire out multiple times. He feared the car would explode and cause severe damage to his home.
When asked what it looked and sounded like, Hans said it looked like “World War II. It was nasty, yeah. The smoke was choking, plastic was burning. It was bad."
The deputy responded and was able to safely get the driver out of the car by cutting the man's seatbelt off. He then went to check on the residents of the home. The sheriff's department says while the home was beginning to burn, the deputy escorted the homeowner to a safe location.
The sheriff's department said, "Had it not been for Deputy Thomas’ quick thinking, heroic actions, and volunteering to respond, the outcome of this crash could have been very different! The Kenosha County Sheriff’s Department could not be more proud of Deputy Thomas’ actions."
The driver was arrested and booked into the Kenosha County Jail for: OWI (1st), reckless driving endangering safety, operate without valid driver's license, failure to keep vehicle under control, and passing in a no passing zone.
Today, the living room is what the Vogt’s call a "mess." With the fireplace ripped from the wall. But Hans is thankful everyone is okay.
"This stuff can be replaced. And I'm glad he was okay too. I don't want to see. The last thing is somebody hurt. So it was the best of a bad situation."
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