Bystanders Lift Car To Save Child

BOCA RATON, Fla. (CBSMiami.com) – A group of concerned citizens and police officers worked together Thursday morning to free a six-year-old boy from under a 3,000 pound car.

Boca Raton Police officers were called and arrived just after 8:00 a.m. to find the child pinned underneath a car.

According to Boca Raton Police, the boy, Dominic Deroberts, had tripped and fallen in front of a car as he was getting out of his grandfather's car.

"He thought he was dead," said Coleen Deroberts, Dominic's aunt. "His leg was wedged. There was no leverage for him to bend the leg to get it out. He was dragged and his ear was severed."

That's when police officers and a group of bystanders stepped into action. One investigator calmed the boy while three first responders and some bystanders lifted the car.

Boca Raton Police said the child was taken to Delray Medical Center. He suffered a punctured lung and his ear had to be reattached.

"We thank these officers," Coleen said. "If they weren't strong enough, the outcome would have been very different."