SAPS vehicle hits car
A police
van from Mondeor carrying prisoners being taken to court, collided into a car
side-on, on Kliprivier Drive, at 07:55 on Wednesday February 13.
13 February 2013 | Julie Maule
The car,
a Toyota RunX, came off the Kliprivier off-ramp from the N12 highway. The
driver said, "I saw the traffic lights weren’t working and the
intersection was being treated as a four-way stop. I stopped and looked and
then proceeded across the road. I saw a police van coming at me and before
I knew it, I was hit on my side of the car. My car was pushed over onto
the grass verge," said the driver, who was visibly shocked.
The SAPS
vehicle hit the RunX on the side and pushed the carver onto the grass verge.
According
to an eye witness, Renata Erasmus, who was travelling on the same road as
the police van, "As I was approaching the traffic lights they were
flickering on and off red and suddenly turned to green. I saw the car driving
over the intersection so stopped but the police van carried straight on over
the intersection, hitting the car side-on. The police van was travelling
more than 60km/h and if the driver hadn’t been going so fast he could have
swerved and avoided the car.
"I
spoke to the policeman who was driving and told him he was going too fast. His
answer was, ‘Yes but I’m taking prisoners to court.’ I went over to see how the
driver of the car was and made sure she was fine. She was shocked but didn’t
seem to have any serious injuries."
SAPS
members take a statement from the driver of the car.
Emergency
vehicles attended the scene and it’s alleged two of the prisoners had slight
injuries and were taken to a nearby hospital.
The
CHRONICLE has contacted Mondeor SAPS spokesperson for comment and is awaiting a
reply.
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