A good Samaritan plunged into action today near Merritt, after a car went off the road into Nicola Lake.

Merritt RCMP say a car went off the road along Highway 5A into the lake, directly behind the Nicola Dam, just after 12:30 this afternoon.

And police say the man driving behind that car pulled over and jumped into the lake, and managed to pull the driver out of the car before it sank.

Mounties say the car went off the road because of “driver inattention.”

The driver was taken to hospital with minor injuries and was also ticketed for driving without due care and attention.

Police extended a thank-you to the good Samaritan, saying “without his assistance the outcome of this incident would have been drastically different.”