Children dodge death as car crashes into Downham house
A DAD and two tots had a lucky escape when a car ploughed into the front of their house.
Quick-thinking Shaun Gibbs (37) managed to hurl Kaine (2) and Demi-Leigh (3) down the hallway as the car skidded toward the front door where they were standing.
Mr Gibbs' partner Laura Clarke (33) and two of her other daughters – Bethany (14) and Amie-Jade (15) were inside.
Miss Clarke said: "I heard Shaun screaming 'somebody help me' and I didn't want to move because I really thought my two babies were dead. When I heard them crying I was so glad because they were alive."
Mr Gibbs, who is registered disabled because of an historic back injury, suffered a slight leg injury in the crash and the two younger children had cuts and bruises.
The driver of the silver Peugeot 307 – neighbour Phil Tuffin (59) – was shocked but uninjured.
He said: "It really shook me up because the two children were at the front door."
A metal support was propping up the front door of Mr Gibbs and Miss Clarke's rented home in Bay Walk, off Hillcrest, Downham, yesterday. Builders put it in after the crash at 10.30am yesterday morning.
Mr Gibbs and Miss Clarke have only lived in the street since September. Any other day the children would not be at the front door at that time, but on a Monday they like to take sandwiches to the dustbin lorry workers, who had just been by.
Householders in the street are blaming mud on the road for the crash.
Many of them have recently signed a petition demanding that developers Persimmon Homes, who are adding to the new estate, clean the roads more regularly and have called police about it a number of times.
Neighbour Mrs Eva Maile-Hall said: "It has been an accident waiting to happen."
Adrian Evans, managing director, of Persimmon Homes East Midlands, said: "While we are sorry to hear that an incident has occurred, as with any new housing development, due to the nature of work being carried out, there will be a degree of debris created, including mud on the surrounding roads.
"As a result, to ensure disruption is kept to a minimum, we sweep surrounding roads in proximity of our Downham development every day and a mechanical sweeper is employed regularly."
l RIGHT: Lucky escape – Shaun Gibbs (37) surveys the damage left around his front door after a car ploughed into it. Picture: ALAN MILLER 08AM12100 www.photostoday.co.uk
Email to a friend
Print this page
Looking for...
Featured advertisers
Jobs
Search for a job
Motors
Search for a car
Property
Search for a house
Weather for King's Lynn
Sunday 27 May 2012
Today
Sunny
Temperature: 10 C to 24 C
Wind Speed: 15 mph
Wind direction: East
Tomorrow
Sunny
Temperature: 10 C to 23 C
Wind Speed: 10 mph
Wind direction: North
