Landowner Marty Sebire with the car which crashed into his paddock. PHOTOS/KAREN COLTMAN
Belvedere Rd too fast
KAREN COLTMAN
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A car driven by an elderly man crossed the centre line on Belvedere Rd in Carterton at about 3.20pm on Friday afternoon, before leaving the road, crashing through a gate, and coming to rest on private land.
The driver received no serious injuries, and used his walking frame to walk to a Wellington Free Ambulance assisted by two paramedics. He was taken to Wairarapa Hospital for a check-up.
Landowner Marty Sebire was alerted to the crash by his son who said, “Dad, do you know there is a smashed-up car in your paddock?”.
The car came to a stop just before the land sloped away sharply to the right and a few metres before the Mangatarere Stream.
“If he didn’t strike that strainer at the gate, I reckon the driver would’ve gone either over the bank or gone into the river,” Sebire said.
Belvedere Rd changes to open road speeds a few kilometres out from Carterton’s High St.
Over the eight years Sebire has owned the 5ha block, the fence has been taken out by vehicles a couple of times in the same spot, and once 80 metres of his fence was taken out on the west side of Mangatarere Bridge.
He said the road speed was too fast for the condition of the road and the bends in it.
“It should be around 60 or 80kmh here right up to Cobden Road. 100kmh is way too fast and is dangerous.”