A Rowlett police officer is being hailed as a hero after pulling a suspected drunk driver from a burning vehicle—just moments after that same driver crashed into the officer’s squad car.
Dramatic Rescue Caught on Camera
The crash occurred early Thursday on Interstate 30 in Rowlett, where Officer Issac Gorskikh was assisting with a separate incident.
Body camera footage shows Gorskikh smashing the window of a locked, burning car to free the unresponsive driver. He then dragged the man to safety and lifted him over a concrete barrier, shielding them from passing traffic.
Suspect Identified
Police identified the driver as 33-year-old Lyn Alan Smith, who was allegedly under the influence when he slammed into Gorskikh’s patrol car. Despite suffering injuries, the officer immediately acted to save the suspect.
“Instead of checking his own injuries, his law enforcement instinct kicked in,” said Rowlett Police Cpl. Jaqueline Vergara.
Related Incident in Garland
The crash happened shortly after a separate police chase in Garland, which ended with a suspect fleeing into Lake Ray Hubbard.
Garland police had attempted to stop 30-year-old Jose Andrew Ybarra for reckless driving. After leading officers on a slow-speed chase across the Lake Ray Hubbard Bridge, Ybarra abandoned his moving vehicle and jumped into the lake.
Search and rescue teams later recovered his body.
Officer Recovering
Officer Gorskikh, a 28-year-old Army veteran, was taken to the hospital and later released. He recently transferred to the Rowlett Police Department after serving with Dallas PD.
Texas Times will provide updates as the investigation continues.
