Toppled tree crushes moving Mercedes, 'very lucky' driver survives

BEVERLY HILLS, Calif., March 25 (UPI) -- Firefighters in Beverly Hills, Calif., said they had to cut the roof off a Mercedes Benz after a massive pine tree crushed the car while it was in motion.

Authorities said strong winds in the area toppled the tree about 8:30 p.m. Tuesday and it landed on the moving Mercedes Benz on Lexington Road and Benedict Canyon Drive.

Firefighters said they had to cut the roof from the vehicle to free the driver, who was conscious and talking to firefighters during the rescue. The man was transported to a local hospital in unknown condition.

"Anytime you have an accident like this and can walk away from it, so to speak, very lucky driver," Dave Grate, Beverly Hills fire battalion chief, told KABC-TV.

Witness Daniel Broukhim told KCBS-TV it "sounds like a miracle" that the man survived the incident.

"I heard that my neighbor said that he talked to the guy who did pull him out from the car and I'm not even sure how they did that when you look at the location of the tree on top of the car, it must have been pretty difficult or pretty scary," Broukhim said.