Elderly couple pulled from fiery wreck

November 22, 2005 (WLS) -- Two Good Samaritans helped police rescue an elderly couple from their burning car over the weekend in the western suburbs. One of the heroes used a frozen turkey to shatter the car's windows.

Hurricane Katrina took away Mark Copsy's Louisiana home, but it brought him back to his children and family in Northlake.

"With them coming up from Hurricane Katrina - and all of us here - it's going to be quite a different Thanksgiving and I'm very proud," said Karon Carelli, Copsy's Mother-in-law.

Carelli is proud - because Sunday afternoon - Copsy and his son were leaving a Northlake grocery store, food in hand, when they saw a car burning on Wolf Road. An elderly couple was trapped in a Buick.

"I kicked the window, it didn't break, so I took the turkey to smash the window," said Mark Copsy, Good Samaritan.

Mark Copsy was not the only one at the scene -- two Northlake police officers quickly responded and another Good Samaritan went inside Walgreen's to get a fire extinguisher.

"Flames were coming out of the car. The whole car was filled with smoke, so I immediately just put the fire out. I used the whole fire extinguisher on the whole fire," said Michael Carpanzano, Good Samaritan.

John Brani, 89, was trapped in the driver's seat.

"I put the driver in a bear hug and yanked on him twice and took him out the driver's side window," said Officer Michael Willner, Northlake Police Department.

His 90-year-old wife, Juliana Brani, was in the passenger's seat and another officer helped save her.

"It was definitely a group effort. Without one person there, it definitely could not have turned out as it did," said Officer Mark Pawlak, Northlake Police Department.

The Copsy family has decided that this turkey will not be on their Thanksgiving table.

"We are not going to eat that turkey because we want to donate it to that family," said Tony Carelli.

At the retirement home where the Brani's live, friends are praying for their recovery.

John and Juliana Brani, believed to be in their late 80s or early 90s, remain hospitalized in critical condition. Officials said they were badly burned in the crash.

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