He was driving on a dark night.
Past simple and past continuous
Past simple
1 Add-ed to make the past simple (regular) for all persons. Use did not with the infinitive without to to make the negative and use did to make a question.
2 Many common verbs have irregular forms for past simple statements,
e.g. go went, seesaw, be was/were.
Casey went to the station. We saw the crash.
3 Use the past simple for past actions, states and facts.
Casey lived in the USA.
Millions of immigrants moved to the USA in the nineteenth century.
4 We usually use the past simple for repeated or usual actions or situations.
While I was on the train, Mike called twice. Casey walked to work every day.
Past continuous
5 Make the past continuous using the verb was / were + verb + -ing.
6 Use the past continuous (e.g. was walking, were living, etc.) to talk about events which were in progress at a particular time in the past.
On 30 April Casey was driving his train back to the station.
What was he doing the day before?
7 Use the past continuous for a description of simultaneous ongoing situations.
It was raining, so we weren't driving fast. What were the passengers doing while this was happening?
Past simple and past continuous
8 We can use the past simple with the past continuous in the same sentence. The past simple is a shorter action/event that happens in the middle of, or interrupts, a longer past continuous action/event.
My dad phoned while I was having a shower
9 Use the past continuous to give the reason for a past event, or to set the background to a story - to talk about what was going on when an event happened. The train was going fast, so it couldn't stop quickly. I was listening to the radio when I heard the news.
When, while and as
10 Use when, while or as to link past simple and past continuous verbs. Use when before the past simple or the past continuous verb. Use while before the past continuous verb.
While he was falling, he heard Casey. I didn't say anything when / while the police were asking questions.
11 Use when to join past simple events that are consecutive.
The train stopped when it arrived at the station. When the phone rang, Jack answered it.
12 We usually use when with states, e.g. ages. They left America when they were children. Casey died when he was 37.
13 We usually use as to describe two short events that happen simultaneously, or two events that change together.
As the train crashed, everyone screamed. As the train went faster, Casey worked harder.