A COURAGEOUS motorist has been praised for pulling a man from a burning car following an accident that claimed the lives of three people.
Police say his brave actions undoubtedly saved the life of the 30-year-old.
Tributes have been left at the scene where a Ford Focus carrying five people to work at a bacon factory in Malton crashed with a Citroen Relay van, heading in the opposite direction.
A 40-year-old woman, her 18-year-old son and another 47-year-old man, all travelling in the Focus and all from Hull, died at the scene on the B1248 near Wetwang on Wednesday.
Traffic sergeant Andy Fraser, who is leading the investigation for North Yorkshire Police, said there would have been a fourth fatality had it not been for a passing motorist.
"I would like to thank the man who stopped at the scene and rescued one of the passengers from the Ford Focus," he said.
"The man put his own life in danger and his courageous actions undoubtedly saved the man's life."
The man who was rescued was taken to Hull Royal Infirmary in a critical condition.
He is now in a serious but stable state, as is a 37-year-old who was also in the car.
The five Ford Focus passengers were all Polish.
The driver of the Citroen van, a 48-year-old man from Pickering who was taken to York District Hospital, has since been discharged.
North Yorkshire Police, investigating the crash, have reissued their appeal for witnesses after more information into the crash on Wednesday emerged.
Further investigations have established the crash happened at 5.40am, and not shortly after 6am as first thought. Therefore officers are widening their appeal to trace motorists who were travelling along the B1248 near Wharram le Street, between 5.30am and 6am.
They have also issued an appeal to trace the driver of a van who could be a vital witness to the events that led to the collision.
Sgt Fraser said: "We believe the Ford Focus had attempted to overtake the van just prior to the collision and it is crucial that we trace the driver of this van.
"It is entirely possible that the van driver is not aware that a collision had occurred.
"On Thursday morning, at the same time as the collision, we carried out static checks on the same stretch of road, however, this has not led to us tracing the driver.
"We are therefore appealing to anyone who was travelling along that road, in a van, on Wednesday morning, in the direction of Wharram le Street, to contact us as a matter of urgency. They could be a vital witness in our investigation."
The five people in the car were travelling to work at The Karro Food Group Ltd in Malton.
Charles Pascall, HR director, said: "We're doing everything we can to support the families of our colleagues who were fatally and seriously injured in Wednesday's road accident."
The road, close to the border between North and East Yorkshire, was closed for almost 11 hours on Wednesday as police recovered the casualties, the scene was examined and the vehicles recovered.
Anyone with information should call North Yorkshire Police on 101, and ask to speak to PC Ian Barratt.
You can also email ian.barratt@northyorkshire.pnn.police.uk
