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A man left hanging upside down by his seat belt after his car rolled onto its roof down a steep bank directed rescue services to him by honking his horn last night.
The 21-year-old man’s car went over a bank on Reid Road a steep and winding road up the Papamoa hills, and rolled onto its roof just before 8pm.
The man was relatively unscathed, but confused when he called emergency services on his cell phone, says Tauranga senior station officer Len Sabin.
“He was hanging upside down and his breathing was restricted. He might have been a bit concussed because he couldn’t remember what road he was on.
“So fire communications got him to toot his horn until the Papamoa guys came across him.”
It took half an hour for officers to find him, and more than an hour to complete the rescue as the car was 20-30 metres down a steep bank.
Police, St John Ambulance and firefighters from Papamoa, Te Puke and Tauranga attended.
Firefighters went down the bank to the vehicle, released the seat belt and got the driver out of the car.
Te Puke St John Ambulance staff say he suffered minor injuries.
A 27-year-old motorcyclist suffered minor injuries when he dropped his bike in Hewletts Road earlier today.
St John Ambulance was called at about 4.50am and the man was taken to Tauranga Hospital with minor injuries.
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