KEY POINTS:
Mack Pouwhare had no time to dwell on the horrific sight of seeing a young woman electrocuted - he had to act to save three young children from the same fate.
The Marlborough vineyard contractor rushed 400m from his home to get the children free of live power lines brought down by the car they were travelling in on Saturday.
Having seen a panicked 18-year-old woman hit the power lines in a shower of sparks, and her 19-year-old sister lying unconscious nearby, Mr Pouwhare feared a 3-year-old girl, her baby brother and cousin would also hit the lines dangling near them.
"It's not about being a hero or anything," he said. "It's about being on the spot and trying to help as many people stay alive as you can."
The car carrying the two adults and three children went off the road about 5.50pm at Spring Creek, near Blenheim, and knocked the pole down.
"We heard a crash, then our power went down for a brief moment," Mr Pouwhare said.
"My first reaction was to go out and have a look, and when I got on the deck I could see two ladies just screaming their heads off and out of control."
Mr Pouwhare's grandson got the keys to his ute, and as he got to the vehicle "I saw the lady walk into the power line and get electrocuted".
He drove his ute to the crash scene and found the two adults lying on the ground outside the car.
The women had managed to get their children out of their car seats, but the 19-year-old had been shocked while she held her baby son in her arms.
"My main objective was to get the kids out first, because they were all lying under the wires."
The baby boy was dazed after being shocked, and the other children were screaming. He hoisted the two youngest children to safety in his arms.
"When I picked [the boy] up I could smell his hair was burnt."
He told the 3-year-old to stay sitting down as he took the others to his ute "and to crawl out on her hands and knees ... and guided her to me".
"If she had of stood up, she would have got electrocuted."
The 19-year-old woman was lying dangerously close to the dangling lines. Mr Pouwhare said the 18-year-old woman died while he was helping the children.
Emergency services arrived to help.
The three children have been treated in hospital and are now with family. The 19-year-old woman remains in a critical condition in Wellington Hospital.
Mr Pouwhare said the effects of the ordeal sank in Saturday night and he was struggling to cope on Sunday, but yesterday he began to feel better.
"I try to keep myself busy. I try not to think about what happened."
He hopes to meet the children when they have recovered.
