Good Samaritan pulls mother, 2 children from burning car after fatal Ontario County crash

ROCHESTER, N.Y. (WROC) — A Fairport man and another driver helped pull a mother and two young children from a burning vehicle after a deadly crash Wednesday in Ontario County. The crash happened around 3:45 p.m. on County Road 12 in Naples. Deputies said 911 callers reported a rollover crash with multiple people trapped. As crews headed to the scene, they learned at least one vehicle had caught fire. According to the Ontario County Sheriff’s Office, a 40-year-old woman from Cohocton was driving north on County Road 12 in a 2025 Nissan Pathfinder with two children — ages 6 and 8 months — when her vehicle swerved into the oncoming lane and hit a southbound pickup truck head-on. The pickup was driven by 71-year-old Brian P. Johnson, of Naples. Deputies said his wife, who is also 71, was riding with him, along with their two dogs. The couple was towing a 35-foot camper. A third driver, a 34-year-old Fairport man, was heading south behind the Johnsons in a 2023 GMC Terrain. Deputies said he could not stop in time and crashed into the back of the camper. The impact pushed the woman’s SUV backward and caused it to overturn. As the SUV caught fire, deputies said the Fairport man got out of his own vehicle, despite minor injuries, and helped pull the woman and the two children to safety. Another motorist who stopped at the scene helped remove Johnson’s wife from the pickup. Both the Pathfinder and the pickup were eventually engulfed in flames. Johnson was pronounced dead at the scene. Deputies said the couple’s two dogs also died in the crash. The woman was flown by Mercy Flight to Strong Memorial Hospital, where she was listed in critical condition in the ICU. Deputies said the two children suffered very minor injuries and are expected to be OK. Johnson’s wife was taken to Strong Memorial Hospital with leg fractures and is expected to make a full recovery. County Road 12 was closed for several hours while deputies reconstructed the crash, which remains under investigation.