No good deed goes unpunished: Motorist has the roof of her undamaged car cut off after giving refuge to elderly crash victims
Thursday 10th January, 2013
Her beloved car survived without a scratch when an out-of-control lorry demolished two vehicles near hers.
But that was where Janice Dunlop’s good fortune came to an end.
After offering two shaken survivors of the crash shelter in her car, she could only watch in dismay as firemen took the roof off so that the pair could be treated.
Wrecked: Janice Dunlop's avoided getting caught up in the chaos after an out-of-control lorry demolished two vehicles near hers only for firemen to later remove its roof
Paramedics decided the drastic action was necessary after the elderly woman and her son both developed neck pains.
Yesterday Mrs Dunlop, 38, a mother of two, was counting the cost of her good deed but said: ‘Although it is inconvenient and has put us in a difficult position financially, I would do it again.’
She and her friend had watched in horror as a skip lorry lost control on a bend and slid down a hill on its side, crushing two cars in its path before halting in front of her silver Vauxhall Vectra.
Quick-thinking Mrs Dunlop managed to avoid being hit after reversing away from the destruction as it unfolded on the A27 near Arundel, West Sussex, on Sunday morning.
Chaos: The lorry demolished this car when it went out of control. No one was badly hurt in the accident
No regrets: Mrs Dunlop said: 'Although it is inconvenient and has put us in a difficult position financially, I would do it again.'
In the chaos that followed, she allowed the 46-year-old driver of a Toyota RAV4 and his 73-year-old mother to sit in her car after theirs was wrecked.
Mrs Dunlop, from Littlehampton, said: ‘They looked very distressed and were clearly in shock, they were clutching at their chests. I felt awful for them.’
Once in the vehicle, the pair began experiencing neck pains, which left paramedics and firemen in a difficult position.
Mrs Dunlop, who had been taken to a fire engine to keep warm, said: ‘I was told that the roof of my car would need to come off.
Horror: Mrs Dunlop had watched as a skip lorry (pictured) lost control on a bend and slid down a hill on its side
‘I was in shock, especially after surviving the crash untouched, and I was dreading telling my husband Steve. I couldn’t watch. I know it is just a lump of metal, but I relied on that car and I loved it.
‘It was the only car we have in the household and we can’t afford to replace it.’
Mr Dunlop, a mechanic, said: ‘I’m just glad that she is OK.’
They are waiting to see if the loss of their X-reg car will be covered by insurance.
A spokesman for South East Coast Ambulance Service said: ‘It is never ideal to take the roof off a perfectly good car and we thank the car owner for their assistance.’
No one was badly hurt in the accident.
