Robert and Carolyn Scott were driving down Interstate 95 around 10 a.m. Monday morning, en route to a doctor’s appointment, when they heard a boom. The Milford couple hadn’t hit anything, but the car behind them started flashing its headlights.
“All of a sudden smoke filled the car,” said 81-year-old Carolyn Scott, during an interview later in the day. “It was darn scary.”
The Scotts, who were about two miles north of the Hogan Road exit in Bangor, realized their 2016 Kia Sorento was on fire.
Robert Scott, 82, tried to brake, but the pedal wouldn’t go down, and if anything, the SUV appeared to be accelerating. He tried to shift into reverse and ended up in neutral, which eventually brought the vehicle to a stop, Carolyn Scott said.
When Robert Scott opened the driver’s door, flames started coming in the car, Carolyn Scott said. She exited through the passenger side. and he tried to climb over the center console to follow her, but his foot got stuck.
Fortunately, passersby who had stopped were then able to pull him out of the burning SUV.
“The whole thing was terrifying,” Carolyn Scott said.
A nurse stopped to help and put Carolyn in her car, away from the fire in case there was an explosion. After Robert was rescued, and Carolyn could breathe better, the nurse drove them back home to Milford. An Orono ambulance gave her some oxygen to help after the smoke inhalation, but the couple did not go to the hospital.
Carolyn said she didn’t remember the woman’s name, but wished she could send her a card to say thank you again.
“Some good samaritans certainly made a difference today,” Bangor Fire Assistant Chief Chandler Corriveau said.
There was compressed air in the car, which Carolyn said she uses to help breathe, and she refuted a rumor circulating on social media that she was smoking a cigarette.
“I’ve got more brains than that,” she said. “I’ll be 82 years old in June. I think I have a few more brains than what [the rumors] have given me.
They didn’t hit anything and don’t know how the fire started. Authorities weren’t able to determine a cause because the vehicle was completely destroyed, Corriveau said.
The couple bought the SUV in January and had only put 1,155 miles on it, Robert Scott said. They won’t be buying another Kia, Carolyn Scott said.
For now the couple isn’t going anywhere, with their SUV burned up, along with Carolyn’s walker. But they’re both doing OK, and said that the rest of the week has to go better than their Monday morning went.
