Beauty pageant winner Dimity Rustage rushes to aid of two women in Birrong
A BEAUTY beauty pageant winner freed a driver from a car that crashed into a house, and then carried the 90-year-old occupant out of the house despite a leaking gas main.
The Express
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A GUTSY beauty pageant winner and a forward-thinking 90-year-old have stopped a car accident ending in tragedy.
Dimity Rustage, 19, was visiting a friend in a Birrong street on Thursday when she heard a loud noise and went to investigate. A 27-year-old woman had lost control on a bend and crashed into the Rodd St home of Ursulla Thompson, 90.
Ms Thompson was reading in bed at the back of the house.
Miss Rustage, who won Miss Diamond Australia 2016, rushed to free the driver from the car, and ran inside the unstable house to rescue Ms Thompson, who she carried out in her arms.
During the rescue, a gas main exploded following the crash, and Miss Rustage covered Ms Thompson’s mouth instead of her own to ensure the elderly woman did not breathe in any gas.
No one was seriously injured thanks to Miss Rustage’s heroic efforts and Ms Thompson’s daughter Kerrie Beaumont said her mother was doing well, but was still “very shaken up”.
“She’s very fortunate — I said ‘no more buying lottery tickets mum you’ve had your luck’,” Ms Beaumont said.
Miss Rustage she said she was still “shocked” at how she had reacted.
“It was just natural instinct,” she said.
“If that was me in the car, I’d want someone to help.”
The accident could have been a lot worse too, if it wasn’t for a decision Ms Thompson made almost a decade ago.
“She used to have her bedroom at the front of the house, but moved it to the back for that reason,” Ms Beaumont said.
“The sad thing is she was talking to (Bankstown MP) Tania Mihailuk about this and trying to get something put up like a speed hump put in, but nothing’s happened.”
In August 2015, another car crashed into Ms Thompson’s front yard.
Ms Mihailuk said for the past two years she had been pushing without success for the RMS to reduce speed limit to 40km/h near Birrong train station, which is close to the house.
“As an Opposition MP, I share the frustrations of Mrs Thompson and Ms Beaumont, given that the RMS has simply refused requests to lower the speed limit down to 40km/h,” she said.
“In June 2014, I wrote to the Premier and to (Canterbury-Bankstown) Council seeking their intervention to upgrade the Birrong Station precinct and to implement a traffic management plan to address residents’ concerns.
“To date I am yet to see any action.
“With a high level of pedestrian and motor vehicle traffic on this street, the NSW Government and council must act swiftly to ensure that accidents like this never happen again.”
“Given this terrible accident could have ended in tragedy, I call on the Minister for Roads to immediately intervene to install a 40km/h speed limit on Rodd St near Birrong Station.”
“I wish Mrs Thompson a speedy recovery.”
The driver was not charged.
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