Ohio woman miraculously survives violent car explosion

An Ohio woman has miraculously survived a fiery explosion in her car, which was caught on a security camera.

Loretta Gray, of Cincinatti, was behind the wheel on Monday when the propane tank in the back of her SUV suddenly triggered the explosion of flames and smoke as she was leaving a cooking class, cops say.

She suffered third degree burns to her face and body, and despite the horrific incident is keeping a positive outlook on life saying ‘I’m here for a reason’.  

Ohio woman Loretta Gray was behind the wheel when her car violently exploded on Monday but she miraculously survived, suffering third-degree burns to her face and body 

Gray was leaving a cooking class with a propane tank in the back of her car, that cops believe exploded as she was driving

Gray was leaving a cooking class with a propane tank in the back of her car, that cops believe exploded as she was driving

‘I don’t know what it is. Somewhere, someone needs me in their life. I’m here for a reason,’ she said on the verge of tears to WLWT.

She was leaving the Evanston Recreation Center where she took a cooking class and had a propane tank in the vehicle, which she planned to return to the store after the session.

Investigators believe the propane tank triggered the blast. 

‘What I remember is backing out of the parking space, driving perhaps 20 feet and boom,’ Gray recalled.

‘Debris was flying everywhere, from the steering wheel, from the roof. It was powerful. It was really powerful,’ she added. 

Recalling the horrific accident she said she drove barely 20 feet when her car exploded in flames and smoke 

Recalling the horrific accident she said she drove barely 20 feet when her car exploded in flames and smoke 

The violent explosion was caught on surveillance camera. Her  SUV pictured above moments before the blast

The violent explosion was caught on surveillance camera. Her SUV pictured above moments before the blast

After backing out of the parking lot her SUV exploded in a vicious blast of flames and smoke

After backing out of the parking lot her SUV exploded in a vicious blast of flames and smoke

The fiery blast was caught on surveillance footage. Officer Perry Locke was nearby and ran to pull Gray out of the flaming wreckage

The fiery blast was caught on surveillance footage. Officer Perry Locke was nearby and ran to pull Gray out of the flaming wreckage

She said she felt the heat and flames of the explosion envelop her and she wasn’t quite sure if she was alive. 

Thankfully Officer Perry Locke was nearby. So close, in fact, he was left in shock by the sudden explosion, then rushed to extract Gray from the vehicle. 

‘It was almost like it reverberated through me. From the force of the boom, it took me a second to collect myself,’he said to NBC. 

He said upon rescuing her, Gray couldn’t see or hear in the blast. 

‘I saw her crawling to the passenger’s window, trying to get out. There was so much damage, it wasn’t going to open. So we had to get her through the window,’ he said. 

She was hospitalized suffering third degree burns to her face and arms as well as hearing loss.

Gray's car was utterly destroyed in the blaze, the wreckage pictured above 

Gray’s car was utterly destroyed in the blaze, the wreckage pictured above 

When Officer Locke arrived to the car, he had to pull Gray out by the passenger seat window 

When Officer Locke arrived to the car, he had to pull Gray out by the passenger seat window 

Cincinnati's emergency services pictured at the scene of the heavily damaged car, with parts of its door and roof melted off and windows shattered 

Cincinnati’s emergency services pictured at the scene of the heavily damaged car, with parts of its door and roof melted off and windows shattered 

The windows, doors, and roof were heavily damaged in the fiery blast on Monday

The windows, doors, and roof were heavily damaged in the fiery blast on Monday

By Wednesday she was returned home. 

‘All of this will heal. This is just superficial. This will heal. My life will go on,’ Gray said. 

But it hasn’t been an easy journey. 

‘The night I finally did have the courage to look at my face, I cried. But afterwards, I realized what am I crying for? That was selfish because I’m still here,’ Gray said to Local12.  

She says she hasn’t seen video of the explosion as she’s taking her time to heal and move on from the trauma.

‘I haven’t seen it yet. I have not watched it; I have not seen the car; I have not watched the video. In time, I will,’ she said. 

‘My God got me; he got me. I’m happy to be alive,’ she added.   

Read more at DailyMail.co.uk