Those who helped woman to safety just before Herriman explosion credited for saving her life

KEY TAKEAWAYS

Robert Hawkins and Moroni Rios helped save a woman from a burning SUV Saturday night.
The vehicle's crash into the Domino's Pizza in Herriman led to Saturday's explosion.
First responders credit their bravery for saving the woman's life and another person's potential survival.

HERRIMAN — In the seconds before a gas-fueled explosion ripped a Domino's Pizza in Herriman apart Saturday night, a woman was still trapped inside a burning SUV that had crashed into the building.

Before first responders arrived, several people who saw the crash and flames ran to help.

"I imagine we were probably 80 feet away from the car," said Robert Hawkins, who was one of those who ran to help. "It was really hot. And frightening."

Hawkins, a retired San Diego police officer, recognized what was happening when he and his wife were driving past the Domino's.

He figured someone might need help, and there was no time to waste.

Flames were growing, and gas could be heard hissing from a ruptured line.

Hawkins joined a small group of people running toward the flames to help.

"Somebody had to do it, and there were people doing it," Hawkins said.

He helped pull the female driver to safety, staying with her and comforting her just before the explosion.

"I was over the top of her, trying to talk to her when the explosion happened," he said. "I've never felt anything like that before."

Despite the risk, Hawkins said his old instincts kicked in.

"At one point, I kind of said to myself, 'Well, is this how it ends? I hope not.' And I just kept doing whatever I was doing at the moment," he recalled.

First responders say the actions of people like Hawkins likely saved the woman's life, and possibly the life of another person who was also in the SUV.

Hawkins said he focused on keeping her calm.

"Just holding her hand and keeping her smiling and letting her know, 'You're going to be OK. There are people here to help you,'" he said.

Hawkins doesn't call himself a hero.

Neither does Moroni Rios.

Rios also ran toward the car when he saw it had crashed.

Others were already trying to get the woman out, but she was still stuck in her seat belt.

So, Rios started asking people nearby if they had a knife.

"I didn't even ever think it was a possibility that the building would explode," he said. "It could've exploded right there while we were standing. I didn't know, and I didn't care."

The explosion happened shortly after the woman was pulled to safety.

"That heat … I will never feel anything that hot again," Rios said. "And I was only there for maybe a minute."

Both men, who live in Herriman, say they weren't thinking about danger or themselves.

They were thinking about someone who needed help.

"When there's somebody in need, you just go and you do," Rios said. "I'm a very firm believer in doing things just to help people, not for credit."

"It was my job for so many years. That's my job. That's what I do," Hawkins said. "Now, it was a choice, but it was a choice of humanity, of doing for others, and just being part of the community and helping somebody in need."

Photos

The Key Takeaways for this article were generated with the assistance of large language models and reviewed by our editorial team. The article, itself, is solely human-written.