Chip Sabyan from Sabyan Automotive prepares to tow the vehicle that rolled in a ditch off Highway 97 north of Oliver this morning. Photo by Lyonel Doherty
A Good Samaritan who witnessed a vehicle roll into a ditch north of Oliver this morning managed to break a window and help the driver escape.
Oliver RCMP report that a driver travelling southbound (north of Secrest Hill Road) entered a ditch on the other side of Highway 97. Despite the vehicle landing upside down in water, the driver did not suffer injuries, according to police.
Corporal Brian Evans on scene said the motorist was very fortunate.
The driver was subsequently charged with driving with undue care and attention.
The Good Samaritan told the Chronicle that he observed the driver in his rear-view mirror swerve a few times prior to the accident scene. “He was all over the road,” the witness said, not wanting to use his name.
The witness noted he was going to pull over and record the driver’s licence plate number when the car swerved again and the driver overcorrected and went off the road. The Good Samaritan turned around to see if he could help. He recalled that it appeared the driver’s seat was under water, so he tried to get the hatchback door open, to no avail. He then grabbed a pry bar and knocked out a side window. By this time the driver was crawling towards the back of the vehicle.
The witness subsequently helped the driver escape through the smashed window.
“If he was still strapped in there he would have drowned.”
The Good Samaritan said the driver indicated that he may have fallen asleep at the wheel.
