Mother and child race to escape car that burst into flames on highway, DC officials say
A mother and child raced to escape a car that burst into flames along a highway in Washington, D.C. on Monday, Dec. 13, according to officials.
They survived but were left seriously injured.
Before emergency services arrived, the woman and child were able to free themselves from the burning vehicle on I-295 the evening of Dec. 13, DC Fire and EMS wrote on Twitter the same night at 9:46 p.m.
Identities and ages of the pair were not revealed.
Police initially warned the public to drive carefully due to disabled cars along the highway, with one car reportedly on fire from “unknown object(s) and pothole” in a Dec. 13 tweet at 9:20 p.m.
“It appears multiple vehicles struck a drain cover in the roadway,” Alaina Gertz, a spokesperson for the DC Metropolitan Police Department, told McClatchy News in a statement.
The cause of the fire is currently being investigated, Gertz added.
Flames fully engulfed the mother’s car, creating a plume of smoke billowing into the sky above, a photo shared by DC Fire and EMS shows.
Officials said the fire was quickly extinguished once first responders arrived on scene.
Photos from the aftermath show the vehicle almost fully charred.
The mother and child were taken to a nearby hospital for treatment of their injuries, according to DC Fire and EMS.
Gertz declined to provide an update on their current conditions.
This story was originally published December 14, 2021 at 10:50 AM with the headline "Mother and child race to escape car that burst into flames on highway, DC officials say."
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