The car crash was so strange, police didn’t believe it until they saw it.
But there it was Friday morning, a sport utility vehicle that veered off a Lockport city road, headed for a shopping plaza – and went up a telephone pole’s guy wires.
And the unconscious driver was still in the vehicle.
“We definitely don’t see something like that every day,” said Lockport Fire Capt. Patrick Brady. “The picture speaks for itself.”
Images show the vehicle balancing on the guy wires of the telephone pole, wheels still spinning, its front end completely lifted off the ground at the intersection of Lincoln Avenue and Davison Road.
First responders weren’t quite sure what to do, and the electric company even considered bringing in a crane to lift the vehicle back to the ground.
But fearing that the driver was in danger, the officers used a ladder to climb up into the car, where they saw the driver unconscious. She had passed out after suffering a seizure.
The Lockport woman, whom police declined to identify, was rushed to Eastern Niagara Hospital, Lockport, with minor injuries.
But then came the task of unhitching her vehicle from the wires – with the wheels still spinning.
“It was perfectly balanced on the wires,” said Assistant Chief Michael Seeloff. “Lucky enough, it was front-wheel drive.”
Police wedged pieces of wood on either side of the back tires to stabilize it before calling in a tow truck to ease the vehicle down.
“It came off the same as it went on,” said Brady. “Straight as an arrow, right off the guy wire, and it did almost no damage to the vehicle.”
The incident had almost the entire department amazed.
“I bet if you tried that 25 or 30 times, you wouldn’t get it that way again,” Brady said. “After 20-plus years on the job, I’ve never seen that particular one before. Just an oddity.”
email: cspecht@buffnews.com
But there it was Friday morning, a sport utility vehicle that veered off a Lockport city road, headed for a shopping plaza – and went up a telephone pole’s guy wires.
And the unconscious driver was still in the vehicle.
“We definitely don’t see something like that every day,” said Lockport Fire Capt. Patrick Brady. “The picture speaks for itself.”
Images show the vehicle balancing on the guy wires of the telephone pole, wheels still spinning, its front end completely lifted off the ground at the intersection of Lincoln Avenue and Davison Road.
First responders weren’t quite sure what to do, and the electric company even considered bringing in a crane to lift the vehicle back to the ground.
But fearing that the driver was in danger, the officers used a ladder to climb up into the car, where they saw the driver unconscious. She had passed out after suffering a seizure.
The Lockport woman, whom police declined to identify, was rushed to Eastern Niagara Hospital, Lockport, with minor injuries.
But then came the task of unhitching her vehicle from the wires – with the wheels still spinning.
“It was perfectly balanced on the wires,” said Assistant Chief Michael Seeloff. “Lucky enough, it was front-wheel drive.”
Police wedged pieces of wood on either side of the back tires to stabilize it before calling in a tow truck to ease the vehicle down.
“It came off the same as it went on,” said Brady. “Straight as an arrow, right off the guy wire, and it did almost no damage to the vehicle.”
The incident had almost the entire department amazed.
“I bet if you tried that 25 or 30 times, you wouldn’t get it that way again,” Brady said. “After 20-plus years on the job, I’ve never seen that particular one before. Just an oddity.”
email: cspecht@buffnews.com