A man spent eight hours overnight at the bottom of a bushy bank after he crashed his vehicle by Lake Rotorua and couldn't find his cellphone to raise the alarm.
Rotorua police Sergeant Aaron Bateman said the man was lucky to walk away from the crash with little more than a back injury and mild hypothermia.
The 45-year-old was on his way to work on Sunday night when he realised he had left his meal at home. He had turned around and started to drive back when, Mr Bateman said, he failed to take a right-hand bend and crashed his Ford Courier ute down a bank. "He's got out of his car but passed out or fallen asleep," Mr Bateman said.
"He's found his phone when it's got light and has been able to call for help. He wasn't visible from the road so police used an airhorn, while he was being spoken to, to find him."
It took about 15 minutes for police to find him.