Florida Driver Alerts Woman to Flaming SUV, Moments Before It Is Overcome by Fire

A Florida motorist was saved from a potentially grim fate, seconds before her SUV burst into flames over Memorial Day weekend. 

Meredith Olinger says she watched in disbelief as she noticed flames shooting from beneath an SUV driven by Susan King on the Orlando interstate. 

Olinger tried to get King's attention.

“There wasn't any way she could have seen the flames underneath. It was like a rocket ship or something that had jets underneath," Olinger told Inside Edition. 

King, who had borrowed the car from her friend, Tyla Kennedy, finally pulled off to the shoulder once she noticed Olinger's desperate attempts to flag her down.

“As soon as I pull over, there is like an explosion — there's smoke coming out of the vents," King told Inside Edition. 
  
King rushed out of the vehicle. Seconds later, it was engulfed in flames. 

"I'm thinking, I could have been in that car," King added. "I could have been dead or badly burned and I walked away without a scratch. That's God."

The 2012 Kia Sorento was included in a safety recall for an engine defect.  The car manufacturer says it had tried to contact Kennedy, but did not have an accurate address. It is not known if the fire was caused by that engine defect.

The car is now a charred mess, but no one was seriously hurt in the incident. 

The owner of the vehicle did get some money from her insurance, however. She said she still owes $2,000 on her loan for the SUV. 

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