Thursday, 11 February 2016 - 4:25pm |
Waitematā

Update - crash on State Highway 16 involving 5 month-old baby

1 min read

At 10.43am a Police patrol car was carrying out radar speed checks on State Highway 16 near Waimaukau .

A vehicle travelling in the opposite direction passed the patrol car and the officers recorded the car travelling at 124 kilometres per hour on the radar device.

Officers performed a u-turn and signalled for the car to stop by activating their lights and sirens.

The driver pulled into a layby for a short period of time but then suddenly accelerated away at speed.

Over the next five minutes the driver continued to flee Police at speeds of up to 150 kilometres per hour, with the knowledge that there was a 5 month-old baby in the backseat.

The officers were only aware of two adults in the car during the pursuit.

The fleeing driver then lost control of the car and the vehicle rolled onto it's roof. Police immediately jumped out to provide assistance and found the baby girl lying next to the car. Officers immediately began first aid on the child.

The 22 year-old male driver was arrested at the scene and taken to Auckland Hospital to be treated for moderate injuries. He is a forbidden driver on a number of active charges and was also breaching his bail.

The baby and it's mother, who had minor injuries, were flown to Auckland Hospital. The baby is not thought to have life-threatening injuries but is currently undergoing a series of tests and is under observation.

As is routine, the incident will be reported to the IPCA.

The driver will be charged with a number of offences upon his release from hospital.

ENDS

Beth Bates/Waitemata Police