Girl helps blind father rescue mother

By Robert Macy, Associated Press Writer

LAS VEGAS - Prone to seizures and legally blind, David Hanna fought panic when a campfire exploded, engulfing his wife in flames.

''You're my eyes,'' he told his 14-year-old daughter, Krystallyn, sitting her on his lap behind the steering wheel of the family car in a race to find help for the critically burned woman.

Paramedics say the quick action by the father and daughter saved the life of Tammyla Hanna, 34, who was reported in critical condition Monday at University Medical Center.

Saturday's nightmare began when Mrs. Hanna poured gasoline on a fire in a barbecue grill at a remote campsite 25 miles southwest of Las Vegas. The subsequent explosion set fire to her head and hair.

Hanna said he couldn't find his cane and stumbled toward his wife, drawn by her cries for help and Krystallyn's screams of ''Help, Daddy, Mommy's on fire!''

Hanna said he found his wife who was trying to rub her head in the dirt and rocks as she screamed ''I'm dying! I'm dying!'' He ripped her jacket from her and smothered the flames, then got her into the front seat of the car.

He got in the driver's side, slid the seat all the way back, then told the 94-pound Krystallyn, ''You're my eyes. I can't see. If you see a car, block the road. We have to get mommy to help. Don't listen to anyone but me.''

In a telephone interview from his home in Pahrump, Nev., 60 miles west of here, Hanna, 35, said he didn't have time to worry about whether his petite daughter was up to the task. She had steered a car only once previously, just briefly on a dirt road during a California trip.

''I worked the gas pedal and she steered,'' Hanna said. ''She did a great job.''

Krystallyn said she was afraid of the responsibility, but more afraid of what would happen to her mother.

''I wanted to get my mom some help,'' she recounted Monday. ''I really felt bad about her.''

After driving for what Hanna described as ''forever,'' Krystallyn noticed an oncoming vehicle and - as instructed - turned the family car to block the road.

The motorist stopped, then raced the burned woman and her family to a fire station at Mountain Pass on the summit of Highway 160, where a Flight for Life helicopter from Las Vegas was dispatched.

David Hanna was diagnosed with a brain tumor as a baby and underwent surgery to have it removed at age 13. He began losing his sight 10 years ago. The malady has left him subject to frequent seizures.

Steve Ekmark, an American Medical Response paramedic who responded to Saturday's accident, said he can't recall a similar incident in 29 years in the profession.

''Had he not got her out of there, she probably would have shut down, quit breathing,'' Ekmark said.

While Ekmark was crediting the husband, Hanna said it was his daughter who was the real hero.

''If it wasn't for her, she would have died,'' Hanna said.