Couple livid after woman drives into their cars
PARKHURST – A Parkhurst couple is livid after their vehicles were severely damaged during an incident involving a woman who was alleged to have been intoxicated.
![](https://images.caxton.co.za/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2014/05/Afrika22ParkhurstC_590710402.jpg)
Lyle and Grant Pewsey-Lindhorst were at their home on 20th Street when a driver in an Audi hit and severely damaged a Chevrolet Corsa bakkie, which was parked on the side of the road, and forced it onto the pavement.
A BMW X5, which was parked on the other side of the road, was also hit and damaged during the incident. Both cars were stationary and belong to the couple.
Lyle claimed he walked up to the woman who had evacuated her car, which was on its roof. “I asked her in front of witnesses if she had been drinking and she replied that she was drunk and sorry for what had happened,” he said.
![The overturned Audi. The driver allegedly drove into and damaged two stationary vehicles.](https://images.caxton.co.za/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2014/05/Afrika22ParkhurstC_5426175701-423x317.jpg)
A neighbour, who asked not to be named and was at the scene that night, claimed the woman was visibly under the influence of alcohol. “You could smell it from a mile away and she admitted it. She kept saying, ‘Don’t lock me up.’”
However, the woman in question has denied that she had been drinking on the night of the accident, saying allegations that she was under the influence were not true.
“I don’t remember much of the accident, all I remember is seeing a dog and swerving. I only came out of shock in the ambulance,” she said.
Lyle claimed he went to the ambulance and told the paramedics that she needed to have a blood test.
“They told me that the only people able to authorise this would be the police. I told them they should wait for the police to arrive,” he said. However, she was taken to hospital before police could intervene.
![Lyle Pewsey-Lindhorst stands next to his BMW X5 which was damaged during the accident.](https://images.caxton.co.za/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2014/05/Afrika22ParkhurstC_524338977-423x317.jpg)
Parkview police spokesperson Sergeant Lloyd Ramovha said police had unfortunately arrived on the scene after the woman had been taken away by the ambulance to a hospital, therefore a blood test could not be carried out.
The woman said that she had been rushed to hospital due to the nature of her injuries. “They [paramedics] were fearful that my heart would stop.” She added that, as a result of the accident, her sternum was cracked and she had a bruised eye.
On either side of the road there is a stop sign and a traffic circle, within 150m from the scene of the accident. Lyle claimed the damage would not have been as excessive if the woman had been driving within the speed limit of a residential area which is 60km/h.
Apart from costs of renovating their new home, the newly-wed couple may be faced with additional costs of repairing their vehicle too.
Did you see the accident scene? What are your views on what happened?
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Of course the police weren’t there in time. Parkview SAPS routinely take up to an hour to respond to any call in Parkhurst or Greenside. And when they do turn up, they seldom want to do anything but issue verbal warnings. I refer to a drunken hit and run in Greenside specifically, where the Parkview SAPS arrived 48mins after the second phone call to them and allowed the drunk driver involved in the accident to be driven away by her friends without taking any action. Apparently because they weren’t on the scene, they can’t prove she was driving (despite eyewitness accounts, mine included) and thus can’t send her for blood tests, breathalyser or take any action. Lazy policing is the root of 90% of the areas problems.
Ya police take their time to respond in any scene but they have faster mobiles they prefer 2 come after the scene an take only statements and leave