Man Saves Motorist From Flaming Car

MORGAN CITY, La. (AP) â€” A 6-foot-7, 372-pound pro wrestler used brute strength to pry open the jammed door of a burning pickup truck and save the driver's life. <br><br>Chad Bonvillain, a bail enforcement

Monday, December 18th 2000, 12:00 am

By: News On 6

MORGAN CITY, La. (AP) â€” A 6-foot-7, 372-pound pro wrestler used brute strength to pry open the jammed door of a burning pickup truck and save the driver's life.

Chad Bonvillain, a bail enforcement officer who wrestles under the name Bronco Bob, was driving by when Gary Smith's pickup collided with a tractor-trailer Saturday about 40 miles from New Orleans.

``When I pulled up and saw the flames, there were four people standing around watching and not doing anything to help him,'' Bonvillain said. ``I couldn't just stand there, I had to try something.''

First, Bonvillain and a bystander pulled a woman out the passenger door. But they couldn't get to Smith because a center console and the truck's crushed front end had pinned his legs under the dashboard.

With his cell phone in one hand as he called police, Bonvillain used his other hand to pull on the crumpled driver's-side door.

``At first, I couldn't get it to budge,'' he said. ``But I just kept pulling and pulling until the metal started to bend.''

Bonvillain then grabbed Smith around the neck and carried him to safety.

``As soon as I pulled him out, I heard a `poof' sound and the flames were in the cab,'' Bonvillain said.

Smith, 40, suffered a broken arm and several broken ribs. Police charged him with drunken driving.