When Anthony Guadagno came to in the driver’s seat of his truck, he knew he needed to escape or he would die.
“I knew that if I didn’t escape, my friends would be visiting that spot a lot in the future,” said Guadagno, a day removed from his accident.
Guadagno, 30, of Bennington, was driving Tuesday afternoon on North Bennington Road when he swerved to avoid a deer. The tires of his Ford F-550 caught in the soft sand on the side of the road, pulling him into Contoocook River, he said. Guadagno said the road conditions led to the accident, not driver inexperience.
“I was pulled toward two small trees, which flipped my truck over and sent me into the river,” said Guadagno.
Guadagno’s first struggle was getting his seatbelt off, which took two hands. Guadagno waved his hands until he found a “basketball-sized” air pocket in the passenger’s side foot-space.
The only window open in Guadagno’s cab was the driver’s side, which was buried in the muddy riverbed. After he was unable to open the passenger’s side door, Guadagno realized he was trapped.
“If it wasn’t for him, I don’t know if I would have survived,” said Guadagno, of the good Samaritan who came along and saved his life. Guadagno said the passerby opened the door for him.
“I don’t know who he was, I was too shaken up to ask his name,” said Guadagno. “If I ever saw him again, I’d thank him and offer to buy him dinner at Harlow’s.”
After the rescue, Guadagno was taken to the hospital by his wife, Sarah. Guadagno was checked by hospital personnel and deemed injury free.
“Every day is a blessing because you never know when it can be taken away,” said Guadagno. “The whole time, I couldn’t stop thinking of my wife; she was really my drive for survival.”
Nicholas Handy can be reached at 924-7172 ext. 235 or nhandy@ledgertranscript.com. He is also on Twitter @nhandyMLT.