The long road to recovery

BY JANIE SMITH

Lynette Kilmartin has no memory of the high speed hit and run that nearly killed her but she will be dealing with its aftermath for years to come.

The last thing she remembers is getting out of a taxi on Ponsonby Rd at 4.20am last Friday before the speeding car crashed into her, throwing her several metres down the road and knocking her unconscious.

Lynette had been out for dinner with friends and ran into more friends along the way.

"It turned into a really good night, lots of laughing and talking," she says.

She had only moved to Auckland from Wellington three weeks ago to start a new job and the company had put her up at a Ponsonby hotel, which is where she was being dropped off when disaster struck.

"When I first came to hospital, they thought I was dead apparently. Then they thought my leg would have to be amputated, most of it was missing."

The calf muscle was ripped from her right leg which has seen her in and out of surgery since last Friday.

She needs to have plastic surgery to reform her calf and says it will never look like it used to.

Taxi driver Gurmeet Sran, who was dropping her off, says the incident happened "within two seconds".

"I had just got out of the cab to clean out the rubbish and the car came around and bang," he says.

He saw Lynette's belongings scattered across the road and saw her lying about four metres from the taxi, which was also damaged by the car.

"I ran to her and saw she was not screaming, she was just unconscious. I was very upset at the time, I got my mobile and dialled 111. In the meantime, a station wagon came along and I waved them down."

Thankfully there was a doctor in the car who was able to look after her until an ambulance arrived.

Mr Sran's car was taken to be examined by police and will also need to be repaired, leaving him without an income in the lead up to Christmas.

Lynette is still in hospital and her family has flown up from the South Island to be with her.

She says the incident is "a bit unbelievable" and hard to comprehend, but she is staying positive.

She says she feels sorry for the driver who hit her.

"He must be feeling pretty awful, it will ruin his life."

The speed limit on Ponsonby Rd was recently lowered to 40kmh after past incidents where pedestrians were struck by vehicles and injured or killed.

A 22-year-old North Shore service station forecourt attendant has appeared in the Auckland District Court charged with reckless driving causing injury and failing to ascertain injury.

Anyone with further information can contact detective sergeant Jason McIntosh on 820-5781.

- © Fairfax NZ News