A driver was rushed to hospital by helicopter Tuesday morning after his car hit a deer south of Campbell River.
The collision caused the driver of a two-door sedan to swerve, hit a driveway and roll off an embankment on Hamm Road near Highway 19A in Black Creek, according to Oyster River Fire Rescue deputy fire chief Chris Murray.
“It looked like he hit one side of the driveway, basically flipped his vehicle to the other side of the driveway, and down into an embankment,” Murray said.
Firefighters got the emergency call around 5:35 a.m. They found the man trapped in his car, and they used the jaws of life to pry open the door.
The lone male occupant was injured but able to speak.
He said he’d struck a deer, which was apparently crossing the road when the incident occurred, Murray said. The dead animal was found nearby on Hamm Road.
READ MORE: Alcohol and speed believed to be factors in collision – Campbell River RCMP
VIDEO: One man dead after fiery crash at Peace Arch border crossing
The man appears to have suffered head and spine trauma, and was having problems with his right arm.
Murray said the car travelled perhaps 20 or 25 feet away from the road, down an eight-foot embankment, near the intersection with Macaulay Road.
There were about a dozen firefighters on the scene, along with paramedics and police.
Once the driver had been extricated from the car, an ambulance took him to Miracle Beach Mini Golf, located a short distance away on the North Island Highway, where a chopper landed and flew the man to hospital.
The BC Emergency Health Services and RCMP didn’t immediately respond to inquiries on Tuesday morning.
@davidgordonkoch
david.koch@campbellrivermirror.com
Like us on Facebook and follow us on Twitter