Woman recovering, driver not cited after crash that led to food truck fire

The owner of a Mexican food trailer that went up in flames this week in Minneapolis is now out of the hospital and recovering from her injuries.

On Monday night, a car crashed into the trailer with the woman inside near the Midtown Global Market, causing it to catch fire.

"I love to serve people. I like to do it from the heart," Leticia Hernandez, the owner of Antojitos Dona Lety food trailer, said in Spanish.

It became a routine for Hernandez and her husband, Raul Flores.

For the last 20 years, they’ve parked their food trailer and set up shop on Lake Street, but Monday was different. Around 6:30 p.m., a car crashed into the back of Antojitos Dona Lety and the trailer went up in flames while Leticia was working inside.

"I said to myself I had to get out. By the time I was done saying I have to get out, I was already on the floor," she said in Spanish.

She made it out before it exploded.

Leticia has eight broken ribs, as well as cuts and bruises. She also has to use a walker for the next six months.

"She can’t do anything, she has to stay resting the whole time. That’s very hard for us to see because she’s an active woman," Nelcy Flores, Hernandez’s daughter, said.

Hernandez made it out of the food trailer with the help of good Samaritans who were in the right place at the right time.

"Thank God for Lucio, the boy who got me out of there," Hernandez said in Spanish.

Hernandez calls Lucio Pacheco-Silva one of the angels that saved her life.

He works in a food truck feet away from Antojitos Dona Lety. He said he saw the accident and sprang into action.

"I saw the impact and the food truck went up in flames quickly," Pacheco-Silva said in Spanish. "I didn’t think much more than rescuing the lady. I didn’t care. I wanted to get her out because she was stuck inside."

It was a split-second decision, giving Hernandez a second chance at life.

"I am always going to thank the angels that saved me," Hernandez said in Spanish. "They are very good people. There’s always angels. Sometimes something has to happen for you to realize."

There is a GoFundMe page set up to help the family with hospital expenses and recovery.

Minneapolis Police said the driver of the car that crashed into the back of the food truck was not cited at the scene.