A man killed by a reversing vehicle in the driveway of a Taupo house on the night of Friday, February 11, can now be named.
He was David Paramena Mitchell, a 53-year-old Taupo resident.
"This is another tragic loss of life from a driveway incident," says Senior Sergeant Fane Troy of the Taupo Area Road Policing Group.
"It's a timely reminder to take care in and around driveways, and it shows that young children are not the only ones vulnerable to these types of incidents."
"Police therefore encourage drivers to ensure that driveways are clear of all people when moving vehicles.”
The Serious Crash Unit is investigating and no further information is available at this stage.
7 comments
Not just the driver..........
Posted on 14-02-2017 11:07 | By The Hobbit
Police should also be reminding pedestrians to take care when crossing driveways. Drivers cannot be expected to take on all the responsibility - what about blind spots? Both drivers and pedestrians need to take responsibility. Many pedestrians walk along the footpath crossing driveways whilst their heads are down texting away and with headphones in listening to their music full blast. It makes the 'look' and 'listen' part of 'stop-look-and listen' a wee bit difficult in such cases. I'm not suggesting that this was the case here - just a generalisation. My thoughts go out to this guys family.
@ The Hobbit
Posted on 14-02-2017 18:01 | By Tga local
Drivers take all the responsibility when driving. If you cannot see where you are driving, you adjust your speed to make it safe. Imagine, pedestrians expecting to be safe on their footpath when there are people in cars who own the roads, footpaths, and everywhere else. Try walking somewhere and see how many driveways, road crossings etc you encounter.
Agree with Hobbit
Posted on 14-02-2017 21:11 | By GreertonBoy
Pedestrians and people moving around cars on foot do need to be aware at least. Just because a road user has right of way doesn't mean another car cant hit them, just because a pedestrian has right of way on a footpath doesn't mean they cant be hit by a jogger, cyclist, old lady on granny scooter or car backing out of driveway. Drivers cant be looking everywhere at once, plenty of times I have had to stop walking on a footpath because I see a car about to back out of a driveway... roads, footpaths and driveways are SHARED zones... That being said, condolences to David's loved ones left behind....
100% the driver, every time Hobbit
Posted on 15-02-2017 06:17 | By maildrop
"Blind spots" is an excuse created by people too lazy, and in too much of a rush, to turn their neck. When in charge of a deadly object you should never assume anything. You should always check and adjust your speed to a crawl when backing out of anywhere, until YOU know it is clear, particularly if crossing a PEDESTRIAN area! Some people's attitude needs adjusting if driving standards in this country are to improve. Perhaps it was a foreign driver?!
Missing the point..............
Posted on 15-02-2017 12:30 | By The Hobbit
I take it 'maildrop' and 'Tga local' are not drivers or they would understand my post a little better. Bind spots in cars are not an excuse, you're right, but they do exist and all drivers will acknowledge they exist and can be dangerous. Footpaths crossing driveways are shared zones and both parties need to take care, especially the pedestrian if he or she doesn't want to be seriously injured or worse - it doesn't matter who is responsible - it's too late once you've been hit and I can guarantee the car or other type of vehicle will come off best - argument or no argument. Looks like 'maildrop' and 'Tga local' spend most of their time texting and listening to music through headphones whilst being totally oblivious to their surroundings.
@ maildrop............
Posted on 15-02-2017 12:33 | By The Hobbit
the majority of foreign drivers have better driving skills than the Kiwis!!! There are good and bad drivers in every Country - don't think for one minute that Kiwis are the best. They are amongst the worst drivers I've encountered in the world.
Hobbit
Posted on 15-02-2017 13:24 | By maildrop
Wow, leaping to some assumptions there mate, a bit like the assumptions people make when slamming it in reverse and screaming out it out of driveways. FYI I have been driving 30 years, from cars up to light trucks, and never had any infringements or at fault "accidents". This is because I take care, not risks. "Blind spots" are not fixed and can easily be seen by movement of your body or neck, if you can be bothered, rather than assuming there is nothing in your "blind spot". It is you, and drivers with a similar attitude, that are completely missing the point. Look out for others as well as yourself.
Leave a Comment
You must be logged in to make a comment.