Heat and Machete star Danny Trejo was a real-life hero on Wednesday when he helped to rescue a child with special needs from an overturned car in the Sylmar area of Los Angeles.
The 75-year-old was in traffic when two cars collided. Together with another bystander he rescued the little boy, who was strapped into a seat in one of the vehicles.
ABC 7 Eyewitness News in Los Angeles reported that Trejo was unable to unbuckle the car seat when he crawled inside, but the young woman who was helping him succeeded from the other side of the car. Trejo was then able to pull the child to safety.
Firefighters had to use cutting equipment to free the boy's grandmother from the driver's seat. Three people were taken to hospital, with emergency services saying their injuries were not life-threatening.
Trejo told Eyewitness News that his work with special needs children helped him in the emergency situation.
"He was panicked. I said, 'Ok, we have to use our superpowers'," he recounted. "So he screamed, 'Superpowers!' and we started yelling, 'Superpowers!'.
"We got kind of a bond. I kept facing him away from the accident."
Trejo said it appeared that a car had run a red light, crashing into the vehicle carrying the boy and his grandmother.
He urged drivers to "pay attention".
"And the only thing that saved that little kid was his car seat, honest to God," he continued.
He also gave Eyewitness News some words of wisdom:
"Everything good that has happened to me has happened as a direct result of helping someone else. Everything."
Not only is @officialDannyT (Danny Trejo) one of the nicest actors, he's also a #hero!
— Veronica Miracle (@ABC7Veronica) August 8, 2019
He was right behind a crash in Sylmar and pulled a special needs baby out of an overturned car. He distracted the boy until grandma was OK. ♥️ —> https://t.co/tS2Za4bZVZ@ABC7 pic.twitter.com/U9iLzAkHkA
Trejo's new film, the adventure Dora and the Lost City of Gold, opens in cinemas on Friday, August 16.
