Kiwi heroes save US crash victim

It's not the first time Kiwis have come to the rescue overseas. Buddy Harwood, pictured, helped save a family from a burning car in Canada in June. Photo / file

Two Kiwis travelling in the United States have been hailed as heroes after they pulled a man from his burning car.

The pair were driving on Old Highway 91 that runs through Arizona and Utah when they saw a vehicle in front of them go off the road.

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It hit an embankment and was thrown back on to the road, where it caught fire.

As flames engulfed the car, the New Zealanders raced to help the man, St George News reported. They were able to pull him from the burning car and then called emergency services. The road was closed as firefighters extinguished the blaze.

The man was taken to Dixie Regional Medical Centre in St George, just north of the border in Utah. Last night the centre could not give any detail about his injuries or condition.

St George residents thanked the rescuers on social media.

"Those New Zealanders are heroes," wrote Keith Bradshaw.

Shari Thomas said: "Thanks to visitors from New Zealand, another life is saved. That's awesome."

In June, former Bay of Plenty firefighter Buddy Harwood rescued a family from a burning vehicle in Canada. Mr Harwood, 20, and his girlfriend spotted a plume of smoke and saw a car that had flipped, rolled down a bank and caught fire.

Mr Harwood pulled five people out of the vehicle - a young boy, his parents and grandparents.

"I reached in and grabbed the last person, the mum, and yanked her out and just ran," Mr Harwood told the Herald soon after the rescue. "Then the car just exploded. We were just in time."