Ohau bridge crash

A 34-year-old man was found dead close to his vehicle near Lake Ohau early yesterday morning. Sergeant Blair Corlett of Oamaru police said a passer-by came across the crash at Freehold Creek Bridge and contacted emergency services at 5.30am. The one-lane bridge is between Lake Ohau Village and Lake Ohau Lodge. ‘‘He approached the single-lane bridge and has gone through the right-hand side railing and flipped or rolled onto the creek bed below on the gravel,’’ Corlett said. The man was ejected through the side window of the car and lay a couple of metres away from where it landed. He is believed to be a local man and to have been the only occupant of the vehicle. No other vehicle appeared to be involved. Corlett said the man did not appear to be wearing a seat belt given the way he was ejected from the vehicle.