MEAD, Wash. -

A man who lives near the scene of a crash near Mount Spokane may be to thank for saving the life of a driver who rolled his car into a creek around 4:30 a.m. Thursday morning.

Deputies say the man was driving northbound when he went off the west side of the road near the intersection of North Day Mount Spokane Road and Dunn Road and his Chevy Impala went into the creek.

"Not something that happens everyday. Not in your backyard," Jim Dietz said.

Dietz was in his trailer nearby when he heard the crash.

"I woke up and wasn't sure if I was dreaming or I thought I heard something," he said.

He walked out, saw the driver in the Impala was unconscious, and called 911.

"About five minutes before the paramedics arrived the guy started screaming. Thank God he's OK," Dietz said.

Deputies and paramedics used the jaws of life to extricate the driver from his car. The man was believed to be inside the car in the creek for about a half-hour.

He was placed aboard a MedStar chopper and airlifted to Sacred Heart Medical Center.

Deputies say the driver injured his arm and was both in shock and very cold when he was airlifted from the scene. There's no word yet on what caused the crash.