HECTORSPRUIT – A motorist was seriously injured when he lost control of his BMW when it overturned on Wednesday April 2.
This accident happened near town at about 06:00. The driver, Mr Moosa Nthimba of Hectorspruit, sustained broken ribs and a punctured lung.
According to Mr Bruce Harman, who was first at the scene and managed to rescue Nthimba from the wreckage, he witnessed the accident. He was travelling towards Malalane, and two vehicles were following close behind him, when it happened.
He saw the BMW in his side-view mirror moving into the fast lane, as the road split into two lanes. Shortly after this it started to overtake the vehicle behind him. The driver of the car behind him decided to switch to the fast lane at that very moment.
Nthimba attempted to avoid impact with the other vehicle. He swerved off the road onto the embankment on the right and lost control of his car.
Harman said he flicked his lights at the driver of the other vehicle after it overtook him, however, the person just drove off.
Speaking to Corridor Gazette on Monday morning, Harman said if he had not stopped to check if Nthimba was okay, no one would have known what had happened to him. No other vehicle was following them at the time of the accident.
The BMW rolled about four metres into the tall grass. The wreckage was not visible from the road.
He said, “No one would have known about him if I had not decided to stop and go down there. It was very early and still slightly dark. His family would have been left wondering where he was, and what had happened to him. By the looks of it, the BMW had rolled quit a number of times before it came to a standstill.
“After seeing what had happened I couldn’t just leave. It happened so close to me,” said Harman.
According to him, during the whole ordeal only a truck driver stopped to ask if everything was okay, and no other motorist slowed down to offer assistance.
Furthermore, Herman said TRAC Assist only arrived an hour after he had called for help. A Securicon ambulance was on the scene to assist after 20 minutes.
Nthimba’s wife, Ms Miriam Nthimba, visited this publication’s office on Monday morning.
She said she would like to thank Harman publicly for his compassion and courage.
An emotional and grateful Miriam said, “Words cannot express how grateful we all are to Mr Harman. If it wasn’t for him I honestly don’t think my husband would still be with us today.
“When I arrived at the accident scene, he was there with him until the ambulance took him away. I just want to say thank you very much to him. In today’s world it is hard to find compassionate people such as Mr Harman.
“After helping my husband up the embankment, he returned to recover and safeguard all his belongings.
“It is good to know that there are still people in the world who don’t take advantage of others in such situations. Thank you very much.”
She concluded by saying her husband had been discharged from hospital and was recuperating at home.
