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Wilson Borough firefighters rescue
woman from burning car at Phillipsburg gas station

Published: Friday, March
30, 2012, 1:29 PM Updated: Friday, March 30, 2012, 8:56 PM
By Tony Rhodin |
The Express-TimesThe
Express-Times

Wilson Borough firefighter Mark Cooke, who was stopped Friday morning at the traffic
light in Phillipsburg’s Union Square, saw a car burning in the adjacent US gas
station. Cooke and firefighter Charlie Wacik rushed to help a woman out of the
car, according to Phillipsburg Fire Chief Rich Hay

Off-duty Wilson Borough
firefighters Mark Cooke and Charlie Wacik were waiting late this morning at the
traffic light on South Main Street in Phillipsburg
when they saw smoke coming from a car at the adjacent US Gas station.

Cooke initially thought it was just car exhaust. Instead it was a car fire
that, as it quickly grew, began to panic people at the station.

The friends pulled into the lot as smoke from the car — parked at a pump –
was thickening.

“I saw there’s a lady still in it,” Cooke said shortly
afterward, adding he was shocked. “I’m like, ‘We’ve got to get her out
of there.’”

The pair pulled the elderly woman out of the car unharmed but shook up, he
said. She was checked out by an emergency medical services crew.

“We got her out of the car just in time,” he
said.

The first call on the fire came in at 11:16 a.m. Phillipsburg
fire Chief Rich Hay said the fire was caused by mechanical issues with the car.

The car fire was just smoky at first, but then the Wilson Borough firefighters
saw flames, Cooke said

Cooke said he and Wacik, who both live in Wilson, used chemical fire
extinguishers from the borough station and Cooke’s car to keep the fire under
control until Phillipsburg firefighters arrived. They also made sure the gas
pumps were turned off.

The off-duty firefighters had no protective gear in the car, but Cooke said
that didn’t matter.

“We just sprung into action and did our thing,” Cooke,
39. said. “It is what we’re trained to do. We don’t really think about
it.”

Cooke said the entire endeavor was just “standard
procedure.”

“We’re just glad to be able to make sure she was OK,” he
said.

Phillipsburg police also
aided in keeping the fire from getting out of control, Cooke said.

Hay, the town fire chief, said he did not have the woman’s name to release.
Town police did not respond to calls for comment.

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 Attention Wilson Borough Residents

     You can now pay your  Sewer/Garbage Bill  and Wilson Borough Real Estate Property Tax on line with a credit card.   Just click here  to enter the Official Payment web site.  Click the “Local Payment” box , then the State, and Wilson Borough in the “Entity”box.  Click on the Payment Type which will reveal the payment to be made. From there follow the instruction for each page. It should be noted that there is a fee for this type of payment. To determine the credit card payment fee click on the Fee Calculator link and follow the instructions

___________________________________________________________________________________

Congratulations to Officer Chris Mehan on being appointed to the position of full-time Detective.
His appointment leaves a position available as a full-time officer.

Pictures from this years Borough Wide Yard Sale  CLICK HERE!!!

Deadline for applications is Wednesday August 15, 2012

Questions: wbcouncilpres@aol.com
or
Call the Borough Office at 610-258-6142

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Restrooms Available
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