‘Every second counted’: Leawood honors rescuers who pulled woman from burning car

Three weeks ago, 51-year-old Caroline Kill was pulled from a fiery crash in Leawood by first responders, a dramatic rescue that was caught on a police officers body camera.

At a City Council meeting on Monday, Leawood leaders honored her rescuers for their bravery and saving Kill’s life.

“They are heroes,” said Martha Gage Elton, Kill’s mother.

The crash occurred just after 2 p.m. Nov. 14 at the Tomahawk Creek trailhead parking lot at 117th Street and Tomahawk Creek Parkway, near the Leawood Police Department.

“None of these kind of accidents are fortunate, but it was fortunate that it happened where it did, when it did,” said her father, Alan Elton. “Those officers were right on the scene and every second counted.”

Kill was headed east on Town Center Drive at the time and failed to stop at the Tomahawk Creek Parkway. Kill’s car struck a parked car in the parking lot and a tree, the impact causing her car to catch fire. The investigation into the crash determined a medical condition suffered by Kill was the cause of the crash, said Capt. Brad Robbins, a spokesman for the Leawood Police Department.

The body cam video showed her rescuers rushing to her car, which was engulfed in flames. Kill was trapped inside and as some first responders sprayed the car with fire extinguishers, others tried to get her out.

Audio from the body camera caught the officers grunting as they tried to lift the car up high enough to drag her to safety.

“We got her. We got her,” one officer is heard saying on the body camera video. “Pull, pull pull.”

Kill was taken to a hospital in critical condition with severe burns on her body.

At the City Council meeting, Mayor Peggy Dunn presented certificates to Animal Control Officer Jerry Webb, Fire Captain Kurt Neis, Police Cpl. Robert Mahon, and police officers Andrew Bacon, Mark Chudik, Josh Hayes and Trey Richardson.

“They were very brave,” said Kill’s father. “That car was hot — so hot that the tires were exploding and they had to push it off of her and drag her out from it.”

Fortunately Kill was face down, Alan Elton said. She had suffered third-degree burns from her waist up and around her head and down to her nose. She had second-degree burns on the rest of her face.

Kill, a mother of three children, was taken off a ventilator and the critical list on Monday. Her condition is improving, but she still has a long recovery ahead, which includes surgeries and skin grafts, her mother said.

Kill’s parents said her family has received an outpouring of support from friends, neighbors and the community, including her college sorority. A fundraising page set up on gofundme has raised nearly $40,000 for her recovery as of Tuesday.