AFTER a drunken car crash at nearly 200km/h, police were left with a difficult decision.
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Officers were out on the Hume Highway at Woomargama when the heavily intoxicated driver smashed into the back of a truck before spearing off the road.
The driver, Robert Black, had possible spinal injuries and a badly broken leg and was trapped in his Audi.
The car was on fire and quickly spreading, but medical help and an extraction crew were a long way away.
The police members quickly flagged down a passing driver to pull Black from the sedan despite concerns about further spinal damage.
They had little choice – the vehicle was incinerated less than a minute after he was dragged him out.
It’s pretty serious, but I want to give every chance toward rehabilitation
- Magistrate Rodney Brender
The 38-year-old was saved but the car and two acres of farmland were burnt out.
Tests at Albury hospital showed Black had a blood alcohol reading of 0.151 and an examination of the crash scene showed he had smashed the 2004 model A4 into the truck at 194km/h.
Black was still on crutches in Albury Local Court recently following the smash, which occurred on January 15.
Police had received a string of frantic Triple-0 calls from drivers in Wodonga about 3pm as Black swerved the car all over the highway and had several near crashes.
He had been overtaking in the emergency lanes and missing cars, trucks and motorbikes by less than a metre.
The calls continued into Albury up until the crash near Holbrook.
A police unit had been in the right place at the right time to witness the crash and ultimately save Black from being incinerated.
He had promised to attend the Albury police station after being released from hospital but failed to do so.
Black was charged with reckless or furious driving, or driving in a speed and manner dangerous, and high range drink drink driving.
He told the court he was on a waiting list for rehab and told magistrate Rodney Brender he wanted to work though the issues that led to the crash.
The North Melbourne man has been largely sober for the past seven years after overcoming an alcohol issue, but the wheels fell off when he broke up with his long term partner recently.
“It’s pretty serious, but I want to give every chance toward rehabilitation,” Mr Brender said, and adjourned the matter to June 18.
