Pedestrians narrowly escape with their lives after out-of-control car hits a tree and flips in Sydney suburb

By NICK WILSON FOR DAILY MAIL AUSTRALIA

Published: 07:36 BST, 16 April 2025 | Updated: 08:16 BST, 16 April 2025

An elderly man has been rushed to hospital after flipping his car and narrowly missing pedestrians in a busy coastal suburb. 

Authorities have closed roads along Manly Beach, in Sydney’s Northern Beaches, after a 75-year-old man crashed into a tree and flipped about 2pm on Wednesday. 

The incident occurred on South Steyne beside the Manly Beach promenade.

A spokesperson for NSW Ambulances told Daily Mail Australia emergency services were called to the scene of a single-vehicle collision. 

The man was freed from his vehicle after becoming trapped and was then rushed to Royal North Shore Hospital after suffering ‘minor lacerations’. 

A spokesperson for the Royal North Shore Hospital confirmed the driver remained in a ‘stable condition’. 

Balgowlah resident Tim Hewson, 51, was having lunch with his sons at a nearby restaurant when the crash took place. 

‘I heard that sound of screeching and spinning wheels and by the time I looked up I saw the car hit what’s called a scissor lift, a lift used at building sites, then the car bounced off, sped across the pedestrian crossing before hitting the tree’, he said. 

Pedestrians narrowly avoided being hit after an out-of-control car hit a tree instead (pictured)

Emergency services were called to the scene of the incident on South Steyne near Manly Beach before rushing the 75-year-old driver to hospital

‘It’s lucky there was no one there because it’s normally a very busy crossing, it runs from the shops to the beach.’

Mr Hewson described the crash as ‘jarring’, adding he was impressed by the number of pedestrians who rushed in to assist the driver. 

‘It’s obviously a shame he [the driver] was injured but, at the same time, you realised when you saw the amount of people that ran in just how serious it could have been.’

Drivers have been advised to avoid the area where a clean-up remains ongoing, the Manly Observer reported. 

A number of local residents remarked the dramatic crash was suprising given the narrow street has a speed limit of 30km/h. 

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Pedestrians narrowly escape with their lives after out-of-control car hits a tree and flips in Sydney suburb

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