Amador County – A man was reportedly arrested on suspicion of driving under the influence of alcohol and/or drugs early Wednesday after a crash totaled his car and hospitalized his passenger on China Graveyard Road. The passenger was trapped in the vehicle “and had to be removed, they basically had to take the car apart,” a witness said. The passenger was then flown by helicopter ambulance to a regional hospital. The car was reportedly travelling at a high rate of speed when the driver lost control and the vehicle struck a large tree nearly head-on, crumpling the front end of the vehicle on the passenger’s side of the car, at about 2 a.m. Wednesday on China Graveyard Road. The early morning crash put Jackson Fire Department personnel into high gear with all of their hydraulic powered portable Hurst Rescue Tools, which they have been trained to use to rescue trapped car crash victims. A witness said “the rescue played out on a dark corner on China Graveyard Road, where the driver’s red sports car had come to rest with a tree imbedded into the right front of the vehicle, crushing the metal around the passenger’s lower body.” Jackson Fire personnel methodically sheared, pried, spread with the Hurst Tools and dismantled the vehicle until they could get the victim out. At the scene were personnel from Jackson Fire, Jackson Police, the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection, American Legion Ambulance, the California Highway Patrol, and the Amador County Sheriff’s Office, all assisting at the crash scene. The driver of the vehicle is suspected to have been operating the vehicle while under the influence of alcohol and/or drugs and was taken to Sutter Amador Hospital. The passenger was flown by helicopter to an area hospital trauma center. Story by Jim Reece This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.