Plunge into river survived

Press, 30 December 1976, Page 4

Plunge into river survived

A young Christchurch man escaped probable death on Tuesday when his station waggon careered off the road and dropped 20 metres into the Buller Gorge.

The driver is David Arthur Shaw, aged 20, of 164 Weston Road, Christchurch.

The incident happened between Hawks Crag and Tiriroa, where the side of the gorge is a sheer drop. The Buller River, swollen

by rain, was flowing swiftly. Mr Shaw said last evening he did not remember anything about the incident.

He was taken by some people to Buller Hospital at Westport suffering from concussion.

Apparently the station waggon toppled over the bank and rested briefly on a ledge. Then it fell off the

ledge into the river. Mr Shaw was either flung out on the way down or else he somehow scrambled out after the vehicle hit the water. He was admitted to hospital wet from the waist down.

He was discharged from hospital yesterday morning. The station waggon has not been recovered. Police said yesterday the river was murky and swollen from recent rain.