Driver escapes death after closing his eyes for 'half a second' and veering off a road at 110kph - but what distracted him?
- Driver managed to escape without a scratch when he veered off side of the road
- Man and family was driving from Sydney to Melbourne on the Hume Highway
- The driver got distracted for 'half a second' and drove off to the left of the road
- He then tried to correct himself and the car reversed onto the other side
- Many have criticised the man for putting his family in danger by using his phone
A driver who managed to escape without a scratch when he stopped looking at the road for just 'half a second' filmed the terrifying moment he lost control of his car.
The man was driving from Sydney to Melbourne and had just passed Goulburn in the Central Tableland of New South Wales when he veered off the road on April 18.
The shocking footage shows the vehicle veering off the Hume Highway at 110km/h before skidding over to the other side.
A driver who managed to escape without a scratch when he stopped looking at the road for just 'half a second' filmed the terrifying moment he lost control of his car
'I was distracted for less than half a second and ended up skidding to the other side of the road,' he wrote under the video on YouTube.
Footage shows the car slowly driving off to the left of the highway before hitting a pole and attempting to correct the situation.
'I tried to overcorrect it by steering back and pulling up the hand brake and praying to God not to flip the car,' he wrote.
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'The whole 2-3 seconds was like my whole life. I could hear the panic sounds of my wife and daughter, but I had to get back the control of my car.'
The vehicle then skids sideways down the two-lane highway before reversing into the grass in the middle of the highway.
Fortunately a police patrol car was following the vehicle and managed to help get the car back on the road and direct them to the closest resting point.
'After scrutinising my car and driving condition he allowed us to go and hit the road again,' the driver said.
'We were completely safe with no scratch on us.'
Footage shows the car slowly driving off to the left of the highway before hitting a pole and attempting to correct the situation
The vehicle then skids sideways down the two-lane highway before reversing into the grass in the middle of the highway
'I urge everyone not to use their mobile phone or any sort of distraction (including changing the radio station).'
Dash Cam Owners Australia shared the video to their Facebook page, attracting lots of negative comments as it was believed the driver was using a mobile phone while driving.
Some pointed out that the phone can be seen being used by the driver in the beginning of the video.
'Thankfully no innocent people were involved and hurt. No phone call is that important,' one user wrote.
'Less than half a second?? There was at least 6 seconds where it was obvious you weren't watching where you were going. People like you are why the road toll is so high,' another user said.
'Your eyes were off the road for longer than half of a second & you were playing with your phone. You were risking other people lives just to look at your phone, how stupid can you be, you were lucky this time,' one woman commented.
Fortunately a police patrol car was following the vehicle and managed to help get the car back on the road and direct them to the closest resting point
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