Horry County Fire Rescue and the Horry County Police Department were rushing to a violent 3 car crash with possible fatalities on the Highway 17 bypass at Coventry Rd. Bonefish Grill manager Joe Moreau was on his way to work when he heard the crash. "Yeah it was so bad that with my windows closed and the radio on I heard the impact from a block away". As he rounded a corner he saw the flames across a marshy ditch. He slammed on the breaks, jumped out and sprint through the marsh to get to the accident. When he got there, the 2 other drivers had staggered out of their vehicles and were laying on the ground. Joe saw an older couple still in their vehicle.
“The older gentleman rolled down his window and said, ‘I can’t get the door open, I can’t get the door open.” Joe used all of his strength to pry it open and dragged to 2 senior citizens from the vehicle just as the vehicles tires exploded. The rescue teams were able to see the xplosion and assumed their were now fatalities as they pulled up on the scene.
Joe had also yelled to another person to run to his restaurant and grab the fire extinguisher as he was prying open the door. As soon as he got the couple out the fire extinguisher arrived and he was saving a 3rd person in another vehicle.
While Joe saved at least 3 lives that day he says he shouldn't get the credit. “It always takes a team. I think it’s tough to put that on me. I think it was a group of Good Samaritans that helped the community and not just me alone. I thrive in chaos, that’s kitchen work in general, that’s restaurant work in general. You have to keep calm in chaos,”