PHOTO
Emergency services have attended a spate of vehicle crashes in the Ashburton District, including a truck that rolled on Beach Rd East.
The crash occurred on Monday about 6am just 50m away from where a stock truck rolled a month ago, injuring two people and killing eight cattle.
The section of road, widely known for its rough state of potholes and bumps, is currently under repair.
Ashburton Volunteer Fire Brigade chief Jeff Marshall said the large truck and trailer unit was travelling east between Milton and Cochrane Rds when the driver lost control.
‘‘The driver lost control in the area which is under roads works currently. Only the truck rolled and ended up in the trees,” he said.
A Hato Hone St John spokesperson confirmed they were on the scene.
‘‘One ambulance responded to the scene. Our ambulance staff assessed one patient at the scene in a minor condition. No transport to hospital was required.”
A police spokesperson said the road was blocked while teams worked to recover the truck.
Marshall said another incident on Fitzgerald Rd at Wakanui on Saturday night could have had a very different outcome.
“A car has crashed on a straight piece of road crashing into a hedge. This driver was extremely lucky he just missed two power poles. Gauging by the length of the skid marks on the road, speed may have been a factor,” he said.
Police are making enquiries into the circumstances of how the crash occurred.
A spokesperson for Hato Hone St John said ambulance staff treated one patient and transported them to Ashburton Hospital in a moderate condition.
Two other patients were assessed in minor conditions and did not require transport to hospital.
And luck was again on a driver’s side when emergency services attended a motor vehicle accident last Thursday on Dawsons Rd, Ashton, about 8pm.
Marshall said a male driver in a Toyota ute missed a bend in foggy conditions, and landed upside down in a ditch.
‘‘Luckily there was no water in the ditch,” he said.
The driver was trapped until the fire crews removed a window to free him.
St John said ambulance staff treated one patient and transported them to Ashburton Hospital in a moderate condition.
A police spokesperson said enquiries into this crash were also ongoing.
The Rakaia Volunteer Fire Brigade have had a busy couple of days with two medical call outs on either side of a fatal car accident north of the bridge on Friday, and a vegetation fire.
Rakaia Volunteer Fire Brigade chief Tyrone Burrowes said the crew attended a hedge fire west of the town boundary on Monday afternoon.
‘‘We had a medical call out to Dorie before the crash and another medical call out on Sunday night.”
Lauriston and Pendarves Fire Volunteer Brigades were also on site.
‘‘We were there for around an hour. The fire was completely extinguished when we left so there was no need to stay and monitor hot spots,” he said.
By Heather Mackenzie