ORPINGTON: Crash witnesses thought driver was dead

Melanie Nicholson, 35, was entertaining friends at her home in Ridgeway Crescent Gardens, Orpington when the accident happened at around 2.30am on Saturday.

A Peugeot 206 hit a Mercedes CLK and a Honda Jazz before hitting a lamppost and then smashing into Mrs Nicholson’s garden wall.

The woman driver was taken to King’s College Hospital in Camberwell with a head injury and broken pelvis while the male passenger was treated for minor injuries by paramedics.

'I was so scared'

Mrs Nicholson said: “Thank God this girl survived.

“It was the most horrendous scene I have ever witnessed.

“The passenger climbed out of the car, but to be honest we all thought the driver was dead.

“I was so scared when I saw the driver, I didn't know what to do.

“It looked like a disaster scene out of a film there were so many emergency vehicles.”

Speed humps

Mum-of-one Mrs Nicholson says she has contacted Bromley Council to enquire about getting speed humps put in place and plans to organise a petition.

She said: “People come round here so fast.

“A lot of elderly people and children live in this street.

“We’ve been saying for weeks there’s going to be a serious accident.”

Bromley Council's head of traffic and road safety Angus Culverwell said: “We take road safety very seriously and evaluate each incident on its own merit.

"We consider many different traffic calming solutions and offer complete driving courses to help improve safety awareness.

"Any concerns raised by residents will always be investigated.”

The road was closed until 8.45 the next morning while the girl remains in hospital in a stable condition.

Police say no arrests have been made.