Lucky escape for men after car rolls in snow

Snowy conditions in South Canterbury. Photo / Sam Dobbs

Three men had a lucky escape when their vehicle rolled off the road in snowy conditions in North Otago.

Constable Craig Bennett of Kurow police said when the three Dunedin men left for work at the Aviemore dam from Otematata yesterday morning there was no snow on the ground.

"By the time the hit Parsons Rock area there was snow on the road and going through the Rugged Ridges area they were the first vehicle on the road, so there were no other tracks," Mr Bennett said.

When their ute slid to the left, the driver apparently over-corrected, sending the vehicle spinning.

They slid down an embankment and slammed into a tree.

The tree proved lucky for the men or they may have ended up in a much more serious situation, Mr Bennett said.

"Had that tree not been there, they would've ended up in the creek on its roof," he said.

By that time, the snow was so thick that the vehicle could not be seen from the road.

The front-seat passenger suffered fracture which left a bone protruding through his hand.

Wearing seatbelts saved the two front-seat occupants from more serious injury.

The backseat passenger walked away with a sore shoulder.

The ute was written off.

The men were taken to Oamaru Hospital and the front-seat passenger was then airlifted to Dunedin Hospital for surgery.

- The Oamaru Mail