reversed through a wall outside the Bermuda Fire & Marine Insurance Company building on Pitts Bay Road yesterday morning.

The car was poised to plunge down a steep embankment when passers-by came to their aid, reported Police spokesman Sgt. Roseanda Jones.

Seconds before the smash, the 58-year-old Paget driver attempted to pull out of the parking lot but lost control of his car when it spun into reverse.

Two thirds of the vehicle were left suspended over the embankment when the Mitsubishi Lancer station wagon veered backward into the stone wall which collapsed under impact.

"I was sitting in my office and saw the car hurtling backwards,'' said Mr.

Kieran Garside, project manager for a construction company working in the area. "After it hit the wall, the guy was just sitting there dazed and then people rushed up to help him.'' The man and his wife, both uninjured, were helped to safety and the car was secured with cables by the Fire Brigade.

Within an hour, the car was hoisted back into the car park by Island Construction Company using a crane.

Meanwhile, the couple, still shaken from the experience, only had to walk a few steps from the crash site to claim on their insurance.

Together with a BF&M employee they inspected the damage to the car which was restricted to a smashed rear light, dents, and a bent exhaust. But a 15-foot stretch of wall near the car park entrance was destroyed.

IN THE BALANCE -- A Mitsubishi Lancer teetered precariously over an embankment outside the Bermuda Fire & Marine building yesterday before it was lifted to safety.