A driver has made an appeal to find the Good Samaritans who rushed to help him after he miraculously escaped a horror car crash.
Gary Ward was travelling on the A817 in Argyll and Bute, when a car driving in the opposite direction collided with him. Firefighters were forced to cut the 58-year-old out of his mangled car on December 17 after he was unable to break free.
He told the Lennox Herald this week that he is lucky to be alive, escaping with only bruising to his chest, ribs, lower abdomen, hips, as well as his foot.
But incredible pictures of the wreckage from the crash scene show just how close he came to being seriously hurt. The occupants of the other car - a woman and child - thankfully escaped without injury but where taken to hospital to be checked over, police said.
Gary was driving his hired Kia Stonic on the Haul Road to his work at Finnart Ocean Terminal when the crash happened.
He said: “I was on my way to work from the hotel to Finnart on Saturday morning, when, at around 9.30am on the Haul Road, a car coming the other way swerved across the road and hit me.
“I tried but was unable to get out of the car. I was aware that people were there and heard someone ask about an ambulance.”
Gary told how there was no phone signal, with people at the scene having to go in search of one to summon help for him.
He said: “The place where we were, though, had no signal, so people went to find one to get services. I couldn’t see much as I was stuck, and the airbags blocked my view.
"I do remember a very kind man in a black jacket that was very reassuring, but there were others. I was a bit dazed, to say the least, someone found my phone and my glasses, although I’m not sure who.”
He continued: “It felt like a very long time before all the emergency services arrived, and it then took a while for the fire service to cut me out of the car.
“The emergency services were awesome but were it not for the kind members of the public that stopped and found a way to call them and calm me down, things could have been much worse.”
Gary, who is from Huddersfield, West Yorkshire, was taken to the Royal Alexandra Hospital in Paisley for treatment and was discharged four days later.
He added: “I have a lot of bruises and am very sore right now. Walking is difficult, but I’m out of the hospital, and with time and a bit of rehab, I’m hoping to make a full recovery.
“When I look at the pictures, I am a lucky bloke. I would like to thank every person who was involved in helping me, from all those that stopped to help, all of the emergency services, and all the staff at Royal Alexandra Hospital.
“I have always thought Helensburgh was a lovely place in a beautiful setting, but it is clearly blessed with lovely people too.”
A Police Scotland spokesperson said: “Shortly after 10am on Saturday, December 17, 2022, we were called to a report of a two-car crash on the A817, Haul Road, near Auchengaich Burn.
“A woman and a child were taken to Queen Elizabeth University Hospital, Glasgow, to be checked over, and a man was taken to Royal Alexandra Hospital, Paisley, for treatment.”
A Scottish Fire and Rescue Service spokesperson said they sent four appliances and a rescue unit to the scene.
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