KNYSNA NEWS - The legend is that you're never really a true Knysnarian until you've driven your car into the lagoon. Well, it seems some citizens have been practising hard in their eagerness to be properly inaugurated over the past weekend.
Drivers in the Knysna region ended up in unplanned spots - with one ploughing through the storefront at a garage in Sedgefield, and another winding up upside down in someone else's driveway in Hornlee.
The first incident happened on Friday 5 February, at about 19:00, when a man driving a red Fiat Panda neglected to stop in the courtyard of the Shell Garage at the corner of the Main Service Road and Parrot Street in Sedgefield.
According to the owner of the garage, Ian Sparks, the driver ploughed through the front of the garage's convenience store, coming to a stop just before hitting the fridges.
The Fiat took out a chunk of stock and shelving in the store, too. Photo: Supplied
Luckily there were no customers in the store at the time, and only a few staff members.
Sparks estimated the damage to the storefront, and the shelving and stock inside the store, to be in excess of R50 000. He also stated that he has put in a request for bollards to be put in at the front of the store.
The Fiat Panda stopped just shy of the fridges in the Shell store.
Photo: Supplied
According to Southern Cape police spokesperson Sergeant Chris Spies the 55-year-old driver was arrested on a charge of driving under the influence.
"The suspect was released on Saturday 6 February and was warned to appear in court on 6 September," Spies said.
The second incident occurred just after 02:00 on Sunday 7 February, when a blue Opel Kadett ended up on its roof in the driveway of a house in Davidson Street, Hornlee. However, when police arrived at the scene, the driver was nowhere to be seen.
"On arrival it was discovered that the driver had fled from the scene and is yet to be arrested," Spies said.
The circumstances surrounding the incident are unclear to the police, but Spies did state that an electrical box was damaged at the time of the accident, and that no injuries were reported.
"A case of reckless and negligent driving was opened for further investigation. Anyone with information that could assist the police to trace the driver is kindly requested to contact Knysna Police."
During Sunday morning's accident in Davidson Street, the vehicle ended up upside down in a driveway. Photo: Supplied
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