Man avoids death after car fall into a ditch, catches fire

KOTA KINABALU: A man avoided death when his car that he was inspecting by the roadside rolled into a ditch and caught fire, leaving him with minor injuries.

The 49-year-old was driving along the Kimanis road near the Crocker Range Park when he saw smoke coming from its engine.

Kimanis Fire Station chief Johainin Ruslan said the man then pulled over and went to the engine to check the problem.

“The car was put into first gear when the man went to check what was wrong with the engine,” he said and added that the incident happened at around 7am on Wednesday (Nov 1).

However, the car suddenly rolled into a ditch 20m deep and caught fire, he said.

Johainin said the man managed to avoid falling into the ditch with the car.

“He was just slightly injured. He alerted the authorities for help after that,” he said.

He said firemen received a call about the incident at 7.35am and sent a team to respond.

“The fire on the vehicle was doused and the man was given preliminary treatment before he was taken to the hospital for further examination,” said Johainin, adding no one else was injured in this case.

Operations to clear the area of any hazardous elements ended at 8.30am.