IONIA COUNTY, Mich. — A fiery crash in Ionia County last Thursday left three injured. Thankfully, everyone is safe.
At the time of the accident, the people in the car included the adult male driver, a nine-year-old boy and a three-year-old girl. The hero — the nine-year-old boy himself, Phillip Clark.
Phillip was asleep in the backseat next to his three-year-old stepsister, Ayla. “Ayla started crying after she realized that we got in a car accident, and my heart dropped after hearing her crying,” Phillip said.
Within moments, the car crashed into a tree, and immediately caught fire.
The man driving the car was Ayla's dad. He broke his leg on impact, leaving him unable to save his daughter. Phillip was also hurt, but he knew what he needed to do. “I climbed over Ayla, got her out of the car, put her to safety, and then we watched the car burn a little bit," Phillip said.
Despite Phillip's injuries, he determined that Ayla's life was more important than his own. “If we didn't get out of there, we would have been burning,” Phillip said.
Two good samaritans helped get Ayla's dad out of the car before it fully burned.
Ayla's mom, Alexandria, is forever grateful to Phillip. “I honestly owe that kid my whole life, because he saved my baby,” Alexandria said.
When Alexandria first got to the scene, she didn't know if she would ever see her daughter again. “Once I saw the car, the only thing that was running through my mind is my kid's dead... there's no way that my kid made it out,” Alexandria said.
Phillip spent several days in the hospital, needing surgery. “I had a perforated intestine," Phillip said. "I have a scar that goes from my waist to a little bit above my belly button.”
Phillip is recovering from surgery from home, and Ayla's dad, who broke his femur, is recovering alongside him.
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