Quincy Man Grateful Mayor Walsh Helped Him On Highway

BOSTON (CBS) - Jim Geraghty of Quincy was in his Ford Focus driving home on the Southeast Expressway Tuesday night when he saw some serious car trouble. "My car just shot a fireball out of the side and I was like 'what's going on?" Geraghty recalled.

As luck would have it, just behind him was Boston Mayor Marty Walsh and his security detail. He was heading home after playing host to more than a million and a half Pats fans and he saw the same thing.

"We noticed the car in front of us had sparks coming out under the wheel," said Walsh. The Mayor asked his driver to flash the lights and pull him over.

It was a good thing because Jim Geraghty didn't realize the severity of the situation beneath the hood. "He said 'your car is on fire, your car is on fire. Get everything you need,' and I pulled everything out randomly," said Geraghty.

When he exited his car he saw the second Good Samaritan, none other than the Mayor himself. "Then on the side of the road I see a guy standing next to me and it's Marty Walsh. I'm like 'Marty' and I shook his hand he said 'get your stuff, get your stuff.'"

The Mayor says it's the kind of thing he's only seen in news stories but something anyone should do. "You got to do it, anybody who sees that situation," Walsh said. "Even if you're not a police officer and see that situation you have to try to get the person to pull over somehow, especially with smoke and sparks coming from under the engine."

It was the Mayor's police driver who grabbed a fire extinguisher before first responders arrived, and Geraghty sat in the Mayor's vehicle to wait, and they had a few things to talk about. "We talked about the parade, Marty said it went off great, it was a great day for Boston and he was pleased with the turnout," he said.

It was also great timing for Jim Geraghty who tweeted out his thanks to the Mayor who was taking the credit. "You take care of somebody when you see a situation like that," he said.

Geraghty says he'll be in the market for a new car, and was very impressed and grateful for the response. "They were more worried about me the citizen than anything else," he said.