Buffalo Grove police help man out of burning car

Two Buffalo Grove police officers rescued a sleeping man from a burning car Sunday in a restaurant parking lot on the 400 block of McHenry Road.

The 64-year-old Palos Hills man, was asleep in his 2004 Dodge Stratus around 12:15 a.m. when a witness saw flames and smoke coming from under the car.

By the time police arrived, smoke had filled the inside of the car. The car was locked, and Sgt. Paul Jamil and Officer Cynthia Bock tried in vain to get the man's attention, but it wasn't until Jamil broke the front passenger-side window that he woke up.

Officers helped the man out and away from the car, now engulfed in flames and smoke.

He told officers he had arrived around 10:45 p.m., ordered food, and took it to his car because the restaurant was closing. He claimed to be just eating his fries when the officers arrived.

The man was checked out by paramedics but refused to be taken to a hospital. Firefighters put out the flames but were not able to determine the cause of the fire.