Car plunges off West Side Highway, crashes near 12th Avenue

NEW YORK - It was a wild scene Thursday afternoon after a car veered off the highway, went over a guardrail and plunged more than 20 feet to an area near 12th Avenue. 

The 78-year-old driver was pulled from the car and rushed to the hospital in critical condition. 

Witnesses say it appeared the driver was cut off right before the crash, and that good Samaritans rushed over to help. 

"The people from above were screaming to get him out because the car was aflame. But they couldn't get him out until they put out the fire. So the guys were kicking in the windshield. WE didn't have any weapons, any type of tools, so the guys were just kicking in the windshield to try and get him out of there," witness Shawn Schoonmaker said. 

It all happened around 1 p.m. near West 133rd Street. 

Police are still looking into what caused the crash.