Woman trapped after ute accident

A woman was trapped in a utility for several hours after an accident on a dairy farm near Maruia before she was cut from the wreckage.

Murchison Volunteer Fire Brigade deputy chief fire officer John Hebberd said the woman was ‘‘well and truly’’ trapped when firefighters were called to the property about 10pm on Saturday.

‘‘She had run off the road, and the ute was wedged between trees and down over a bank.

It was believed the woman was stuck in the vehicle for about four hours before emergency services arrived on the scene.

Hebberd said the damage to the vehicle and the terrain made it one of the most difficult extractions he had performed.

‘‘There was no room around her or the ute to actually cut much away – we just had to slowing nibble away.

‘‘Everything we did we had to be very cautious of, because [the vehicle] had twisted around her that much, we had to make sure we weren’t cutting her as opposed to the vehicle.’’

Firefighters from Murchison, Reefton, Springs Junction and Nelson were also at the scene.

‘‘It was a very harrowing experience – it certainly called on all resources to get her out.’’

He said the woman had a broken leg and had taken a nasty hit to the head, along with a lots of scratches and scrapes, but was ‘‘extremely lucky’’ that it wasn’t worse.

‘‘She was still in reasonable spirits.’’

A St John spokeswoman said a patient was flown to Christchurch Hospital by the Nelson Marlborough Rescue Helicopter in a serious condition.