How the Rescue Team Got Tiger Woods Out of the Wreckage From His Rollover Car Crash

Tiger Woods is continuing his recovery in a new hospital after undergoing major leg surgery. Now the firefighters who helped rescue him from the wreckage of his rollover car crash earlier this week are speaking out to Inside Edition.

“Our primary concerns were finding a way out and making sure that there was no further injury to him,” Los Angeles Fire Captain Jeane Barrett told Inside Edition. “We took a hard look at the car, made sure that we had multiple plans.”

“After I saw the vehicle, I was very surprised that he was alive,” one official said.

When they arrived at the accident site, the squad found the pro golfer still trapped inside the wreckage and pinned against his seat by the steering wheel. A rookie firefighter smashed the windshield so Woods could be pulled free.

Probationer Cole Gommoll showed Inside Edition how he did it using the actual ax he used that day. The team also brought the “jaws of life” to the scene, but they were not needed. It took 12 minutes to pull Woods from the wreck. The pressure was on, because any delay increased the danger that he could lose a leg.

Woods was transferred from the trauma center where he underwent surgery to Cedars-Sinai Hospital, about 18 miles away, to continue his recovery. He's expected to remain hospitalized there for at least another week, then return to Florida.

A statement from Harbor-UCLA Medical Center said, "It was an honor to provide orthopedic care to one of our generation’s greatest athletes.”

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