IT has happened to all of us: driving out of Lemon Tree into the setting sun; a dusty windscreen and the blinding refraction of light.

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Most people, even at low speed, seem to handle this temporary loss of vision but for Tanilba Bay’s Pat Simpson it was a very different story.

Pat had just completed her regular computer course at the Lemon Tree Passage Library and was calling in to the Catholic Church on the main road at Mallabula when, due to lack of vision, she misjudged the turn-off and ended upside down in the table drain.

“I thought that the car was on fire,” she said, “but the vehicle was just full of a smoke like dust from the air bags.”

“The idea of being incinerated petrified me. I prayed and at that moment a kindly fellow motorist opened the door and got me out.”

“On top of this, two police officers who were patrolling the area pulled up and took charge of the incident.”

“The Fire Brigade and Ambulance Service did a great job as did staff at the John Hunter Hospital,” Pat said.

“To all of those helpful people, I give my heartfelt thanks and in particular to the two police officers who visited me at my home. I even ran into them in Raymond Terrace and they gave me a hug!”

Although shaken by the ordeal, Pat is back behind the wheel but she is only driving short distances until her confidence returns.

By Geoff WALKER