Baffling crash saw passing car drive onto trailer, teeter off edge, Florida crew says

A very unlikely car crash led to an even more unlikely rescue when a driver was found sitting in a car “precariously” hanging off a car carrier trailer, according to Venice Fire Rescue.

It happened around 10:30 p.m. Wednesday, Nov. 16, and involved the driver of a Nissan Maxima, fire rescue officials said in a release.

The Maxima was not being transported on the trailer, but was instead a passing car that drove onto the trailer as it sat parked, rescuers said.

“A Nissan Maxima traveling south on Pinebrook Rd. drove up a car carrier and crashed near the top, leaving it hanging over the edge precariously close to falling off,” officials said.

“When units arrived on scene they found a middle-age male sitting inside the vehicle uninjured. The male driver was told to remain still until crews could stabilize the vehicle.”

Rescuers used industrial straps to hold the front of the car in place, then brought in a tow truck to “stabilize it from the rear.”

“Once this was accomplished, the driver was safely extricated from the vehicle,” officials said.

The driver’s identity and the cause of the crash were not released.

“The car carrier was dropping off a vehicle to a nearby resident when the accident occurred,” officials said. “The car carrier was parked with its hazards on, under a streetlight with the ramp down when the vehicle struck it.”

Venice police cited the driver for careless driving, officials said.

A Venice Fire and Rescue Facebook post explaining the crash has gotten hundreds of reactions and comments, with many asking: “How does this happen?”

“I could understand if he just went up the ramp, but how did he get sideways?” one person asked.

Venice is about 70 miles south of Tampa.

This story was originally published November 18, 2022 at 6:26 AM with the headline "Baffling crash saw passing car drive onto trailer, teeter off edge, Florida crew says."