Charges considered after car ploughs into bakery

Police say it is too early to know whether an 87-year-old woman driver will face charges after mistakenly stepping on the accelerator instead of the brake and ploughing into an Auckland bread shop yesterday.

Two women were taken to hospital after the car ploughed into the Baker's Delight in suburban Pakuranga during the lunchtime rush-hour.

A small child in the shop narrowly escaped being hit by the car, police said.

Police said the woman hit the accelerator instead of the brake.

Franchise owner Mark Atherton said a customer and a young employee were taken to hospital.

"She just drove straight through, she just carried them right to the back of the shop.

"One of them, the employee, was trapped against the bread slicer and the other was trapped right against the cabinet."

Police said the female customer suffered serious leg injuries and the employee had a cut to the head from smashing glass.

Mr Atherton - who bought the shop just three weeks ago - said the store would be closed for about a month while the damage was repaired.

He would be throwing out bread worth more than $3000 and dozens of 20-kilogram bags of flour.

"We just have to throw out everything, the glass could have gone absolutely everywhere. I'm pretty lucky I've got insurance."

- with NZPA

- © Fairfax NZ News