An Ottawa man who was pinned under a car that hit his bicycle is recovering from serious injuries thanks to some burly bystanders who hoisted up part of the vehicle to free him.
Witness Clare Yu, who works at JBC Travel on the corner of Somerset West and Lyon streets said Friday that she heard a sound like a bomb going off when a car struck the 37-year-old cyclist on Thursday afternoon around 2:30 p.m.
She looked out the window to see the man's entire body underneath the car.
Yu said seven or eight "big" men quickly approached the victim and heaved the car off him and to the side.
She added that there was potential that the men might drop the car back onto the injured man again, but that didn't happen.
"They did a good job, excellent," she said.
An Ottawa police news release thanked the "unidentified bystanders" Thursday, saying they acted "quickly and decisively in saving the life of the cyclist."
The cyclist suffered first- and second-degree burns to his arms and chest from the heat of the car's exhaust pipe and engine, as well as serious chest injuries and a shoulder injury, said an Ottawa paramedic news release.
He was sent to hospital and was in stable condition Thursday afternoon.
The 33-year-old man who was driving the car has been charged with making an unsafe turn under the Highway Traffic Act, police said.
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