It took two hours for emergency services to free a Dubbo man from a vehicle after his leg was impaled by a tree branch.
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The 32-year-old man suffered a serious leg injury while driving an all-terrain vehicle (ATV) at a quarry near Wongarbon on Sunday about 2.30pm.
Orana Mid-Western Police District Inspector Dan Skelly said the branch was propelled up an into the vehicle’s cabin and pierced the man’s right leg “effectively pinning him in the cabin”.
Inspector Skelly said emergency services found the man in severe pain, with the tree branch about 30 millimetres wide and about 1.5 metres long having fully penetrated the man’s right leg, protruding to the other side.
NSW Ambulance paramedics and a Royal Flying Doctor Service doctor treated and stabilised the man, allowing Volunteer Rescue Association (VRA) to free him.
After more than two hours the man was rescued and taken to Dubbo Hospital in a stable condition.
The incident prompted police to appeal with drivers of these type of vehicles to take “extreme care”.
They reminded the public that ATVs could not be registered and therefore could not be operated on public roads, land, parks or reserves.
“This accident highlights the unexpected occurrences that can present that cause freak accidents that can seriously injure or even kill people operating these vehicles,” Inspector Skelly said.
“They should be operated on private property that is free of obstacles that can caused potential accidents and injuries.
“When operating these vehicles people should wear suitable clothing and footwear, and use commonsense when negotiating rough terrain."
More to come.
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