Two East Bridgewater neighbors didn't know each other just days ago, but after what they witnessed, and how they helped, the recent strangers look more like familiar friends. Saturday afternoon, the two ran from opposite directions toward a burning car along Route 106.

"I heard a big crash, I thought the tree fell down on my house," recalled Dina Hartsgrove.

"The pole had been clipped right out so the wires were hanging," said Matt Donlin, of the dangerous scene.

There was no time to think, but somehow, they, with others, reacted calmly and carefully, unbuckling the unconscious driver, and starting CPR until an ambulance arrived.

"The car was on fire, so we pulled her away from the car. She wasn't breathing; didn't have a pulse," said Hartsgrove, who is a nurse.

The 83-year-old Bridgewater woman was rushed to Boston Medical Center. WBZ's Juli McDonald spoke with her family on the phone, who said they are endlessly grateful for the gift of this time: to hug and hold their mom and grandmother, who is surrounded by the people who love her.

"I feel that everybody was put there at that moment. If we didn't all work together to get her out there would have been no chance to do CPR," Hartsgrove said.

The police chief praised the Good Samaritans, calling them a shining example of the "good-hearted and caring people" who fill their town.

"You don't even feel it when you do it. Something inside makes you do it. It's a small world that we live in, and we have to take care of each other," Donlin said.

"I would hope that somebody would do that for my family and we're just praying for Gail and her family," said Hartsgrove.