Japanese tourist sues after crash horror

A JAPANESE woman who worked on an Innisfail banana farm is taking legal action against another tourist who was driving a car that crashed, leaving both fighting for life.

The crash led to the termination of the woman’s unborn child.

Eri Koike was 28 in 2018 when the car she was travelling in with four other tourists rolled on Kennedy Highway outside Innot Hot Springs.

She and the driver, Ryohta Ohtagawa, were critically injured. She was diagnosed with brain damage and spinal injuries.

Tragically, according to documents lodged in the Cairns Supreme Court, her pregnancy had to be terminated due to concerns about the impact of medical procedures she underwent.

Ms Koike, who has returned to Japan and lives near Tokyo, is now suing the driver, Mr Ohtagawa, and insurer AAI for just over $920,000.

She claims his negligence caused the crash. According to court documents, he lost control of the vehicle, which left the road and flipped.

Ms Koike’s legal representative has alleged he was driving at excessive speed, and failed to exercise “proper care and control”.

He was charged by police and pleaded guilty to driving without due care and attention, fined $800 and had his licence disqualified for three months.

His three other passengers, aged between 25 and 30, suffered minor injuries.

Ms Koike was on a working holiday visa and had been working as a farmhand in Innisfail.

She spent more than a month in Townsville Hospital recovering.

She has had an inter-cranial pressure monitor fitted, had to wear a lumbar corset, and continues to suffer from blurred vision, dizziness, vertigo, memory loss, fatigue and PTSD.

A court date is yet to be set.