Colorado man earns ‘hero’s award’ for daring rescue that saved infant from flaming vehicle

A Colorado man recently received the Carnegie Medal for Heroism thanks to his role in daringly saving an infant stuck in a vehicle that was engulfed in flames.

According to the report of the heroic act published by the Carnegie Hero Fund Commission, carpet cleaner Alec Christian Larson, 27 and of Rifle, was traveling in his work van with a co-worker in April of 2024 when the pair came across the aftermath of a head-on collision in Glenwood Springs.

The crash had left Jessica Tucker, 30, and her infant son trapped inside of a vehicle as a fire grew.

At the point Larson arrived at the scene, flames were igniting under the engine compartment from gas that had spilled onto the roadway. Meanwhile, Tucker found herself unable to escape the vehicle with her child. She had been badly injured with several broken bones and the infant remained strapped into his car seat.

Larson took quick action, exiting his work van with a pair of scissors.

First, he assisted Tucker in exiting the vehicle, with Tucker letting him know her baby was still inside.

As flames grew in intensity, Larson attempted to enter a backseat door to retrieve the baby, but was unable to do so. He then made a quick decision to enter through the vehicle’s hatchback.

This move allowed him to be successful in reaching the baby, but he was still unable to get the car seat unbuckled. This complication was only a slight delay in Larson’s rescue effort, as he make the quick decision to use the scissors he brought with him to cut restraints, allowing him to grab the infant.

Larson pulled the infant to safety and handed the baby to bystanders to get the baby away from the vehicle as quickly as possible. Roughly 10 seconds later, the vehicle became fully engulfed in flames.

Despite the terrifying and daring nature of the rescue, Larson was left unscathed. Tucker was hospitalized following the crash, but not burned, and the infant escaped injury.

Following the rescue of Tucker and her infant, Larson assisted law enforcement helping with a man trapped in the other vehicle that had been involved in the crash. This man ultimately survived the crash, too.

“The Carnegie Hero Fund Commission awards the Carnegie Medal for Heroism to individuals from throughout the United States and Canada who risk themselves to an extraordinary degree saving or attempting to save the lives of others,” reads a press release about the award. “The Carnegie Medal is considered North America’s highest civilian honor for heroism.”