Paradise, California nurse sacrifices his Toyota Tundra to save others from wildfire
Allyn Pierce turned back to help patients in need at his hospital in Paradise, only to have his beloved Tundra melted by the blaze.
California is having particularly crappy month, thanks to massive wildfires in both Northern and Southern California. The Camp Fire in the North part of the state is now listed as having the highest death toll of any wildfire in California history, having almost completely erased the small town of Paradise from the map. One nurse put himself at risk last week to help save others from the conflagration and in the process, melted his beloved Toyota Tundra.
Allyn Pierce is a nurse in the intensive care unit at the hospital in Paradise, California. He heeded the evacuation order but was stuck in traffic trying to get out. At some point, according to New York Times reporter Jack Nicas' Twitter posts from Monday, a bulldozer came and moved a burning truck which allowed Pierce to maneuver his vehicle free of traffic. Rather than fleeing to safety, he went back into town and to the hospital to help care for injured patients at an ad-hoc triage center.
Firefighters were eventually able to clear a path to safety for hospital staff and patients, and Pierce began shuttling people out of the blaze in his Tundra. During the ordeal, Allyn's truck was pretty hellaciously burnt. The white paint was cooked to the shade of a burnt marshmallow, the light lenses all melted into goo, but the truck continued to run. Pierce documented the damage afterward on social media, which is where things get even more interesting.
Toyota USA responded to Mr. Pierce's Instagram post by offering to replace his truck for free.
Pierce's formerly pristine, white Tundra TRD Pro now looks like the world's biggest, angriest burnt marshmallow but Toyota wants to help fix that.
"Our hearts go out to the victims of the devastating California wildfires. We are extremely grateful to all of the emergency crews who are working tirelessly to extinguish the fires and helping people to safety," said Toyota representatives in a statement to Roadshow. "We are especially thankful to one hero in particular, Allyn Pierce, for risking his life and sacrificing his Toyota Tundra to drive people to safety. Toyota is so humbled by Mr. Pierce's selfless act that we're pleased to offer him a brand new Tundra."
It's also worth noting that Toyota Financial Services and Lexus Financial Services announced on Monday that they are offering payment relief to those affected by the California wildfires in the form of extensions and deferred lease payments to those who need it.
Those interested in donating to the California wildfire relief effort can visit the Red Cross' website.
