Woman trapped in car wants to thank rescuer

A woman trapped upside down in a car in Otago Harbour wants to thank the mystery man who saved her life.

Judith McFarlane was driving to meet a friend last Thursday in the suburb of Portobello when her car slid off the road and landed in the harbour, the Otago Daily Times reported.

She was knocked unconscious, and when she came to was upside down and breathing in water.

"I just sat there waiting because I didn't have long."

With just moments to live, she heard a voice calling to her through the water, encouraging her to push herself through to the back of the car, where "strong arms" pulled her out to the air.

"To this brave young man who jumped into the harbour, and who went into an upside-down unstable submerged vehicle to rescue someone he had never met, you have all my thanks for the gift of the rest of my life," Ms McFarlane said.

Ms McFarlane, who is in her 50s, said she was also indebted to the people who stopped and helped pull her on to the road up a steep, rocky bank.

Constable Lox Kellas, of Portobello, said police had some idea who the man who rescued Ms McFarlane was, but had not been able to reach him.

- NZPA