Daily Mirror (Northern Ireland)
Crash nightmare
Terror as car ploughs into front of house..while family slept
A FAMILY has been left shocked after a car smashed into their sitting room as they slept upstairs.
The incident happened on Wednesday night in Randalstown, Co Antrim, at a spot which has been highlighted by speed campaigners over recent years.
Councillor Glenn Finlay attended the scene and sent a strong message to the Department for Infrastructure.
He said residents fear nothing will be done to alleviate the ability to speed on the road until a fatal collision occurs. Police investigating the incident have arrested a man on suspicion of a number of offences, including driving whilst unfit and failing to remain at the scene.
Cllr Finlay said: “As residents know, I’ve campaigned on the issue of this through road for years.
“To see this happen, after all the work I’ve put in to oppose this, makes me incredibly angry and it gives me no pleasure to say ‘I told you so’ to the Roads Department.
“People are scared for the safety of their children. I’m just thankful no one was physically hurt as the family were upstairs but they are understandably in a deep state of shock.” Mr Finlay was speaking after a car crashed into a house on Castle Avenue on a stretch of road known as the “rat run”.
He said: “It has meant a real danger to pedestrians and cyclists and this has shown there is also one to residents in their own homes and gardens. “We asked for the department to install bollards but that was dismissed. Unsuitable humps were then installed without correspondence with residents.
“If we continue without proper traffic calming measures being installed as a bare minimum, I have no doubt someone will end up dead on this stretch of road.”
A PSNI spokesman said: “A man was arrested a short time later on suspicion of a number of offences including driving whilst unfit and failing to remain at the scene and was taken into custody. He remains in custody at this time.”