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Three witnesses save Abbotsford driver from drowning

A 21-year-old Abbotsford man was saved from drowning by three passers-by after his car went into a water-filled ditch on Sunday afternoon.

A 21-year-old Abbotsford man was saved from drowning by three passers-by after his car went into a water-filled ditch on Sunday afternoon.

Abbotsford Police Const. Ian MacDonald said the man was travelling in a 1992 Honda Civic at about 12:30 p.m. when he turned east onto Clayburn Road off of Highway 11.

His car hydro-planed through some water on the road, ran into a hydro pole and became submerged in the ditch. The 51-year-old driver of the car behind him, with the help of another witness, pulled the unconscious man from the vehicle and brought him to a dry patch on the side of the road.

A passing nurse then administered first aid until emergency personnel arrived on the scene. The man was airlifted to hospital, where he is in serious condition with head, arm and internal injuries.

MacDonald said the Honda driver had been under water for about two minutes by the time he was pulled free. He would have drowned if nobody had witnessed the accident and rescued him, he said.



Vikki Hopes

About the Author: Vikki Hopes

I have been a journalist for almost 40 years, and have been at the Abbotsford News since 1991.
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