The car ended upside down in a ditch between Halswell and Lincoln. Photo / Supplied
A Canterbury motorist who was on his way to work felt a sense of dread as he ran to a car that had just crashed into a ditch.
Cam Downs was worried the driver would be seriously hurt, but soon found the man, believed to be in his 20s, was uninjured.
The driver said: "I don't know what the f*** just happened," as Downs helped him out of the car.
Downs said it had been a relief to find he was okay after the crash happened about 8.15am last week between Halswell and Lincoln.
"I was fully in panic mode, thinking: 'I have to get this person out of here'," Downs said.
Downs, who lives in Lincoln, was driving on Ellesmere Rd on his way to work as a real estate agent in the city, with his 3-year-old daughter, who he taking to pre-school.
He heard a loud "boom noise", then saw a "huge puff" of dirt up ahead at the intersection with Trices Rd.
A white vehicle that had also pulled over, just in front of him, had also been involved in the crash. The driver of that car was also shaken.
Downs approached the car in the ditch and could see the driver upside down and trying to open the driver's door, which appeared jammed.
He ran back to his car to get something to smash the window and found an umbrella.
When he got back to the car, umbrella in hand, the driver motioned to him to try opening the door from the outside, which was what he did.
Balancing on the muddy bank of the ditch, he held the door open with one arm and used the other to grab the driver and help him out.
Soon more than 10 passing motorists had stopped, including a nurse. As they assisted at the scene, it appeared both drivers were okay and uninjured.
"You never want to see something like that, but it was quite good to be able to help out," Downs said.
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