Politician rescues child and father from burning car

‘Like a real fireman he went to the burning car with a fire extinguisher,’ firefighters say

Polish politician Robert Biedron rescued a two-year-old boy and his father from a burning car after a crash in Tabor, near Warsaw, before local firefighters turned up, 7 October 2019. (OSP REGUT/Facebook)

A politician rescued a toddler and his father from a burning car, winning praise from across the political spectrum just days before a national election.

Robert Biedron witnessed the car bursting into flames after colliding with a truck in Tabor, south of the Polish capital of Warsaw, on Monday.

The left-wing party leader and MEP rushed to help the father and two-year-old boy until emergency services arrived, fire officials said.

Local firefighters posted a photo on Facebook of themselves with Mr Biedron, praising him and saying that “like a real fireman he went to the burning car with a fire extinguisher”.

It is not clear whether Mr Biedron’s heroics will help lift the fortunes of a left-wing alliance that his Spring party belongs to in a parliamentary election on Sunday.

The alliance is polling in third place, far behind the ruling nationalist conservative Law and Justice party, which has support of over 40 per cent, and the centrist Civic Coalition, in second place.

Mr Biedron made history as the first openly gay politician to win a seat in Poland’s national parliament in 2011.

For a time, the youthful and charismatic politician was seen as a rising political star who might revive the political left in Poland, which has grown increasingly weaker in past years amid a surge of right-wing populism.

However, his popularity has faltered following some missteps, including going back on some promises.

Even conservative commentators on social media and the right-wing media gave favourable coverage to Mr Biedron’s rescue on Tuesday.

Associated Press contributed to this report.