Driver Trapped In Wreckage Frees Himself, Walks For Help

BENSON – An elderly man is in the hospital recovering from numerous injuries he sustained in a single vehicle accident in Johnston County.

The crash occurred on a busy highway, in broad daylight, but went unnoticed.

A 78 year-old Dunn man somehow crashed his Chrysler Town and Country on Highway 50 about seven miles north of Benson around 6:00pm Tuesday, and ended up trapped, alone, for about 30 minutes inside the overturned van. The van came to rest in heavy brush in a wooded area, down an embankment, and was not visible from the highway.

Around 6:30pm, the victim was finally able to free himself, climb back to Highway 50, and walk to a nearby house seeking help. EMS immediately transported the man to WakeMed.

According to his wife, he sustained a broken ankle, cuts and bruises. She said her husband was not feeling well when the crash occurred and he was trying to drive to a nearby convenience store to pull over.

The Highway Patrol investigated the accident.


This story has been updated to correct the length of time the driver was trapped in the van