Ballyclare delivery driver praised after rescuing injured motorist

A young motorist has paid tribute to an Asda home shopping driver from Ballyclare who came to his aid after he was injured in a road accident.
Good Samaritan: Asda home shopping driver John Rodger who came to a motorist's rescue after a road accident. INNT 48-814CONGood Samaritan: Asda home shopping driver John Rodger who came to a motorist's rescue after a road accident. INNT 48-814CON
Good Samaritan: Asda home shopping driver John Rodger who came to a motorist's rescue after a road accident. INNT 48-814CON

John Rodger was on his way to make a home shopping delivery when he came across the accident involving 19-year-old Curtis McCullough.

“The weather conditions were pretty bad – low cloud, misty, dark and wet. I saw a figure standing at the side of the road waving. When I slowed down and saw he had blood on his face I stopped and went to see what had happened. His car was on its roof - it had obviously hit a tree and parts of the engine were all over the tree and ground,” John said.

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After checking that there were no passengers in the vehicle, John contacted the emergency services. He then brought Curtis into his van to keep warm, gave him tissues to clean his face and let him use his phone to call home.

“I had first aid training years ago and I knew that if someone is concussed they could be talking logically but then suffer from shock 10 minutes later. I wanted to make sure he was okay,” John added.

Following the accident, Curtis, from Antrim, was able to track down John on social media and thank him for his help and support.

He said: “I was coming home from work. The weather was very bad – the car started to slide and I tried to correct it. I don’t really remember the details but the car went off the road and flipped. It ended up on its roof in a ditch.”

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He managed to get his seatbelt off while upside down and climb up the bank at the side of the road to seek help.

“I was waving but people were driving past. That’s when John stopped and asked me if I was okay. If he hadn’t stopped I don’t know how long I would have been out there. I just wanted to thank him for his help. I couldn’t remember much so I asked the police for his name and managed to find him on Facebook. He’s a real credit to the company – he could have just driven on,” Curtis added.

Samuel Watson, Regional eCommerce manager for Asda Home Shopping in Northern Ireland, praised John for his actions.

“It is really great to hear stories like this. John has gone above and beyond the normal call of duty and his actions really show the Asda ethos of showing respect to others, by stopping to help. As a regional eCommerce manager, it makes me so proud to know Asda colleagues are willing to help out in times of need,” he said.

John has been nominated for an Asda ‘Gold Service Hero’ award.