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Trio swims, hikes from accident scene

car inn river after going off bridge in Port Renfrew

Three young men from Victoria survived a motor vehicle accident near Port Renfrew in early morning hours of February 27.The sedan in which they were traveling had somehow broken through the guard rail on a bridge across the Gordon River, according to Port Renfrew Fire Chief Chelsea Kuzman, plunging an estimated 20 metres and sinking in about five metres of frigid water.The three were able to escape the vehicle, swim to shore and, with the help of a motorist, eventually make it to the BC Ambulance location in the Village of Port Renfrew.“It wasn’t a fire call,” explained Kuzman of the incident. The chief was able to fill the role of ambulance driver, helping out the local paramedic who tended to the fortunate group.“Other than being freezing cold they weren’t badly injured,” said Kuzman who added that the young men seemed to be in good spirits on the way into Victoria.