Two people received serious injuries after the car they were travelling in collided with a power pole. PHOTO/SUPPLIED
Passenger with possible spinal injuries, another trapped under vehicle
BECKIE WILSON
A woman is in hospital with suspected spinal fractures after being thrown about 30m from a vehicle that collided with a power pole on Sunday night.
Another female passenger received “horrific leg injuries” after being trapped for more than an hour under the vehicle, which was pinned down by a broken power pole.
Emergency services were forced to wait for the power to be cut and for the broken power pole to be stabilised before they could reach the trapped passenger.
The crash happened at 8.20pm on Sunday when a people-mover carrying one male and three females veered off the road and hit a power pole along Masterton-Castlepoint Rd, between McKinstry Ave and Masterton-Stronvar Rd.
After about an hour of stabilising the broken pole, and waiting for power to be disconnected, a female passenger was cut from the car in what Masterton fire station officer Mike Cornford said was a very “challenging” extraction.
He said when he arrived the car was on its side, wrapped around the concrete power pole.
One female passenger was found “half in the car, and half out of the car”, and was trapped under the side of the car.
“When we arrived we saw the extent of the situation, and how dangerous it was.
“We were hindered by not being able to get near the vehicle due to the powerlines and the state of the power pole,” he said.
A Powerco crew arrived about 30 minutes later.
While they waited, ambulance staff were able to give the woman pain medication, while other staff stabilised the woman thrown from the vehicle into a paddock, he said.
“The power pole was totally broken and was leaning right over the car and was only held up by the powerlines that the pole was attached to.”
After the site was declared safe, it took about another 30 minutes before the woman was cut free.
“She was in quite a bad state,” Mr Cornford said.
“She had some horrific leg injuries.
“All four people in the vehicle were lucky to be alive considering the state the car ended up in.”
Sergeant Peter Rix said the woman cut from the car was flown to Wellington Hospital.
She was yesterday transferred to Hutt Hospital where she remains in ICU.
He said the passenger who was thrown from the vehicle into the paddock was flown to Palmerston North Hospital on Sunday night.
She was in a serious but stable condition with potential spinal fractures.
The two other passengers in the vehicle were seen by staff at Wairarapa Hospital on Sunday night.
The Serious Crash Unit is investigating.
A woman from a nearby property was not at home at the time of the accident, but arrived shortly after.
She described the scene as “horrible to see” as the car was a “total mess”.
“When they started to move the person there was so much screaming of pain.”
It took about an hour to cut the person out of the car, and was dark by the time the helicopter, which had landed in the paddock next door, left the scene.
The crash cut power from around 3600 properties, but all but 100 properties had power turned back on within an hour, Network Operations Manager Phil Marsh said.
Supply was disconnected for safety reasons and so repairs could be carried out, he said.
The accident was the second this month to occur in a small area along Masterton-Castlepoint Rd near Masterton.
Isaac Epps, 43, died after the motorcycle he was riding collided with another vehicle near McKinstry Ave on New Year’s Day.
Police also attended an accident yesterday at 5.15pm, where a car went off the road into a paddock, a police spokesperson said.
