• A violent crash on the Phu My bridge in Vietnam resulted in several burned-out cars.
  • One Volvo driver somehow survived getting sandwiched between a big rig and another car.
  • Then, emergency workers pulled him out of the SUV as it burned down.

Crashes happen all the time but they rarely leave cars looking the way the Volvo XC90 in this story does now. Not only was it mangled beyond recognition by the force of the impact but it completely burned down after the crash. Somehow, the driver survived both potentially fatal outcomes and bystanders captured his miraculous rescue on video.

The crash happened on the Phu My bridge in Vietnam. It has a roughly four-percent gradient which isn’t wildly steep but is enough that one truck weighing over 10 tons experienced brake failure and couldn’t stop. As a result, it hit eight cars ahead of it.

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Local reports say that despite the havoc, everyone survived, which is wild considering the video embedded below. In it, we see the Volvo in question sandwiched between a blue transport truck and a white SUV. Smoke billows from the rear of the crushed car. Two emergency workers climb up onto the hood and begin pulling the windshield away.

Finally, the driver’s hand pops up through the now-open space. Two workers grab him by the wrist and pull him out of the car as the flames grow closer. Their heroic actions are likely the reason the driver survived. Video filmed later shows the car completely engulfed in flames.

A Volvo XC90 got sandwiched, driver is rescued before the car is consumed by the fire
byu/Natebin inVolvo

The Volvo deserves some credit too. It might be completely mangled and crumpled but the fact that the driver was in good enough condition to climb out says a lot. Volvo has long been a leader in safety technology and in this crash it clearly paid off. Really, all of the vehicles involved managed to keep their occupants alive, which is amazing given the damage.

Evidently, the traffic jam that resulted from this accident covered over a mile of roadway leading up to the bridge. The driver of the truck that began the crash told authorities that his air tank, responsible for the function of his brakes, exploded so he had no way to slow down.