Woman pulled from burning car reunites with officer



SPOKANE, Wash. -- It all happened so fast. One minute Kimberly Novak was driving home after a quick trip to the store, and the next minute she was living her worst nightmare.

Novak told KHQ that she drove over a patch of ice on Spokane's north side when her car suddenly shut off. It wouldn't restart and her locks wouldn't open trapping her inside her own car.

She says smoke began to rise from the hood, then flames.

“I've never been so terrified in my life,” Novak said. “Between that and the smoke, I didn't know what was going to get me first.”

Luckily, Officer Tim Schwering with the Spokane Police Department arrived.

In dramatic video captured from his body camera, you can see Officer Tim Schwering hit the driver’s side window repeatedly with his baton in an attempt to break it and rescue Novak.

It takes Officer Schwering about one minute to break the window and grab Novak.

"You saved my life. You're stuck with me forever," Novak told Officer Schwering after reuniting with him on Sunday.

He went "above and beyond" the call of duty, she says calling Officer Schwering her angel, her hero, and new best friend.

“Right now I'm really blessed. It's humbling to think it can happen that fast without any warning,” she says.