A man who died in Muriwai on Friday was crushed by a car he was trying to push after it had become stuck down a private driveway. Photo / Auckland Rescue Helicopter Trust
A man who died in Muriwai on Friday was crushed by a car he was trying to push after it had become stuck down a private driveway. Photo / Auckland Rescue Helicopter Trust
A man badly hurt when a car rolled over two people on Friday asked rescuers about his son — who was killed in the incident on a Muriwai driveway — as he was comforted, a neighbour says.
The neighbour, who did not want to be named, rushed to help after hearing yelling near his property on the long driveway off Oaia Rd in the West Auckland beach suburb.
He arrived to find three helpers already at the scene, one of whom he had heard yelling.
Together the group rolled the car — at that point right side up — off the two men, the neighbour said.
"It just looked like it was parked [before it was rolled off the men]."
A woman who was in the car when the tragedy unfolded about 1pm was uninjured.
As others started CPR on the younger man, the neighbour comforted the older man.
The man, aged in his 60s, was later flown by Auckland Westpac Rescue Helicopter to Auckland City Hospital with a severely broken leg, but the neighbour said the man stayed calm during their time together.
"He said he was from Hong Kong. He was pretty calm . . . [but] he wanted to know how his son was."
The neighbour also took a turn performing CPR on the younger man, to no avail.
"There was nothing."
The neighbour believed the woman was the wife and mother of the two men, but couldn't talk to her as she didn't speak English.
"She was pretty hard to console."
The tragedy occurred on a long, private driveway off Oaia Rd, Muriwai. Image / Google Earth
He didn't know how the afternoon drive took a heartbreaking turn, but Auckland Westpac Rescue Helicopter crewman and co-pilot Aaron Knight told the Herald it sounded like the family had become stuck after getting lost and going down the driveway, which is several kilometres long and leads to multiple properties.
The men were crushed when the vehicle rolled on top of them after they got out and tried to push it.
Another neighbour said many people became lost after mistakenly thinking the driveway was a public road.
The neighbour who comforted the older man said he spoke to the first person on the scene, a Muriwai local who discovered the stricken family while driving to view a property for sale.
There was no cellphone coverage at the scene and he didn't know how long the family had waited before their dire situation was discovered, the neighbour said.
Knight said the tragedy was the first of its kind he had experienced.
"Vehicles roll over but it's normally from losing control and all occupants are inside of the vehicle. The only other things like this would be a tractor rolling on a farm."
