Woman loses her legs as British couple are crushed against wall by a drunken driver in Bruges
A BRITISH couple are fighting for their lives after being crushed by a drunk driver while taking a New Year’s Day stroll in Bruges. Deborah Dale has had both legs amputated and her partner Simon Huxtable has undergone hours of surgery to save his legs.
The couple, from Witney, Oxfordshire, had travelled to the historic Belgian city for a romantic New Year break and were staying at a hotel in the heart of Old Bruges.
Miss Dale, 34, and Mr Huxtable, 44, were walking along the cobbled streets past typical brick Flemish houses at about 10.30am when they were hit by a Mercedes S320 saloon.
The car, being driven the wrong way down a one-way street, pinned the couple against the front of a house, causing terrible injury.
Sister Emmanuelle, a Catholic nun who witnessed the horrific scene, said: ‘I heard a big bang and then I heard loud scream- ing. There were two people lying on the ground screaming and waving their arms wildly. It was terrible.
‘The people were screaming and screaming and shouting out in English.
‘I tried to reassure them but I cannot speak English.
‘The driver got out of the car and asked someone to call an ambulance. People were coming out of their houses because of the noise.
‘Finally the injured people fell silent and stopped screaming. After what seemed like a long time the police and the ambulance arrived.
‘I have not been able to sleep since. I can still hear them screaming.’
A retired doctor, who lives next to the crash site, administered first aid on the couple while they waited for the ambulance.
Witness Marleen Broeckeart said: ‘There was blood everywhere. The lady’s legs were completely crushed.’ Police breathalysed the driver, a 22year- old local man who has not been named, at the scene. He was found to be over the legal alcohol limit and he was arrested.
But the man, who had been at an all-night New Year’s Eve party in the city centre, was simply banned from driving for 15 days and released.
A magistrate will now decide whether to lay any further charges against the driver.
A police spokesman told the Daily Mail: ‘The driver is a local man.
‘He had borrowed his sister’s car to come to Bruges for a New Year’s Eve party.
‘The next day he was driving the wrong way along a small street in the centre of Bruges.
‘He was meant to turn at a T- junction but he went straight on and drove into the British tourists who were walking along the footpath. The Mercedes is a very heavy car and it pinned them against the front of a house and they were badly hurt.
‘The woman had to have both of her legs amputated. The man also suffered bad injuries. One of his legs was very badly injured but doctors have been working to save them.
‘The driver said he had been
‘She had both legs amputated’
drinking and officers found he was over the legal limit.
‘He was arrested and he was banned from driving for 15 days, which is the normal procedure. A magistrate will decide in the next couple of months if there will be any further charges.’
Miss Dale’s parents, Roger and Diana, were at their daughter’s bedside at the Sint Jan Hospital in Bruges.
A hospital spokesman said: ‘They are very upset.
‘ They don’t want to talk about what has happened to their daughter. It is against hospital policy to discuss the medical condition of patients with journalists.’
Bruges, which dates from the 12th century and is a UNESCO world heritage site, is a popular holiday destination attracting tens of thousands of Britons every year.
The small Old Town is characterised by its winding cobbled streets, meandering canals and pretty squares surrounded by distinct Flemish red-brick houses.
However behind the picturesque architecture is a rich commercial history – Bruges was an important trading centre throughout the Middle Ages.