Teenagers in crash ‘so lucky to be alive’
A passenger in a car that struck and killed an innocent man while fleeing police has posted a video from his hospital bed saying the teens are ‘‘lucky to be alive’’.
Kenneth McCaul, 64, was killed on Tuesday when the car he was in was T-boned by a 17-year-old driver who ran a red light during the pursuit.
Police said the teenager was expected to be discharged from hospital yesterday.
The four passengers in the car, all aged in their teens, remain in a moderate condition in Christchurch Hospital. They cannot be named for legal reasons.
One posted a live video on his social media account from hospital on Tuesday.
In the three-minute video, seen by Stuff, the passenger says another passenger is in a coma.
‘‘So lucky to be alive,’’ he tells viewers.
He then says the names of the other people in the car. When asked what happened he replies: ‘‘car crash . . . we all nearly died.’’ He then pulls his sheet down to reveal cuts and grazes on his body. ‘‘Look at my f ...... , this bad little scratch.’’
When asked where the crash was, he said: ‘‘That real bad one in Papanui ... that car was crushed as.’’
He says the driver of the car was speeding through a red light when it collided with McCaul’s car. ‘‘Then we hit the side of it . . . the guy in the other car died. It’s rats ..... ’’
Another teen, who is sitting on a chair next to the passenger, is identified as being another passenger from the crash.
The teen gives a thumbs up to the camera and smiles as the passenger says he’s ‘‘walking like there’s no tomorrow’’.
The video ends shortly after. Canterbury metro area commander Superintendent Lane Todd said yesterday that no arrests had been made.
The officers involved in the pursuit were receiving support.
McCaul’s partner of 40 years, Owen Fraser, told Stuff on Tuesday that McCaul left home in Kaiapoi at 3.30am.
He worked in the phlebotomy department at Christchurch Hospital. Despite starting at 7am, he arrived early to secure a car park, sleeping in his car with a blanket to keep warm.