A TERRIFIED car passenger had to be rescued after his vehicle ended up hanging over a 70ft cliff – above a caravan park.
The petrified man was trapped in the car after it came off the road in Burntisland, Fife, early on Saturday morning.
In a delicate, 30-minute operation, firefighters stopped the Ford Focus from plunging down the cliff by attaching ropes.
After rescuing the passenger, the car was winched off the cliff by a heavy recovery vehicle.
Ten residents of four caravans at Pettycur Bay Holiday Park that were sited directly under the crashed car had to be evactuated in the 1.30am drama.
Charles Brown, 70, who was one of those evacuated at the caravan site, had just returned from the holiday park’s end-of-season party.
He said: ”It was directly above my car so first of all I was asked to move my car.
”A bit later the police came to the door and said they’d like to evacuate us.”
A Fife Fire and Rescue Service spokeswoman said three fire engines, from Burntisland and Lochgelly, were sent to the scene.
He said: “There were three appliances in attendance from both Burntisland and Lochgelly along with a specialist line rescue team.
“One car was hanging off the edge of a cliff with one person trapped inside.
“Rescue teams made the vehicle safe by securing straps and lines.”
The spokesman said the driver was “otherwise unharmed” and the incident was over just after 2am.
The brigade posted pictures of the rescue on its Facebook page.
The caption stated: “Crews from Burntisland and Lochgelly rescued a male passenger from a car on the edge of a cliff.
“60 – 70 foot (near sheer) drop down to the next terrace, at Pettycur Bay early Saturday morning (20/10) at 0121hrs. Four caravans were evacuated as a precaution.”
A Fife Police spokesman said: “We received a call from the fire brigade at 1.30am who were called out to secure a car which was near the cliff at Pettycur Bay.
“There was one male and one silver Ford Focus involved.
“The passenger side of the car was over the edge of the cliff but by the time we got there the person was out the car.”
The spokesman said the 41-year-old driver of the car had been charged with road traffic violations.
