Bay of Plenty Times
  • Bay of Plenty Times home
  • Latest news
  • Business
  • Opinion
  • Lifestyle
  • Property
  • Sport
  • Video
  • Death notices
  • Classifieds

Subscriptions

  • Herald Premium
  • Viva Premium
  • The Listener
  • BusinessDesk

Sections

  • Latest news
  • On The Up
  • Business
  • Opinion
  • Lifestyle
  • Property
    • All Property
    • Residential property listings
  • Rural
    • All Rural
    • Dairy farming
    • Sheep & beef farming
    • Horticulture
    • Animal health
    • Rural business
    • Rural life
    • Rural technology
  • Sport

Locations

  • Coromandel & Hauraki
  • Katikati
  • Tauranga
  • Mount Maunganui
  • Pāpāmoa
  • Te Puke
  • Whakatāne
  • Rotorua

Media

  • Video
  • Photo galleries
  • Today's Paper - E-Editions
  • Photo sales
  • Classifieds

Weather

  • Thames
  • Tauranga
  • Whakatāne
  • Rotorua

NZME Network

  • Advertise with NZME
  • OneRoof
  • Driven Car Guide
  • BusinessDesk
  • Newstalk ZB
  • Sunlive
  • ZM
  • The Hits
  • Coast
  • Radio Hauraki
  • The Alternative Commentary Collective
  • Gold
  • Flava
  • iHeart Radio
  • Hokonui
  • Radio Wanaka
  • iHeartCountry New Zealand
  • Restaurant Hub
  • NZME Events

SubscribeSign In
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Home / Bay of Plenty Times

Pedestrian lucky to be alive

By Sam Boyer
Bay of Plenty Times·
15 May, 2012 09:23 PM3 mins to read

Subscribe to listen

Access to Herald Premium articles require a Premium subscription. Subscribe now to listen.
Already a subscriber?  Sign in here

Listening to articles is free for open-access content—explore other articles or learn more about text-to-speech.
‌
Save

    Share this article

David Eagle has no recollection of the moment he was struck by a car in Te Puna, smashing his head into the windscreen, breaking multiple bones in his body and busting his face.

Mr Eagle, 33, was struck from behind while walking from his car on Te Puna Station Rd around 6pm Saturday night.

After stepping out on to the road to wave down his partner as she drove to drop him his car keys, he was hit from behind.

His partner had dropped him at his vehicle on Te Puna Station Rd but when he realised he'd left his keys in her car, he started walking towards her house. His partner, realising she had the keys, had meanwhile turned around and driven back to Mr Eagles.

"I remember everything except the accident. I was making sure I was well off the road [ ... until I saw her car]. She remembers seeing me. I stepped into the road. She saw it happen," he said.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

The first people on the scene were able to support Mr Eagle, who suffered massive trauma to his body, until the ambulance arrived. He remained unconscious until he was almost at the hospital.

"The person that hit [me] was apparently a nurse and my partner was the second on the scene. And the third person there was a doctor, apparently.

"The cop said if I'd been a fraction higher on the impact ... if my head had been even a half a foot higher, I'd be dead," he said.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Mr Eagle suffered considerable injuries, including two broken bones in his right leg, a chunk out of his elbow, two split lips, facial grazes, a chip out of his left hip and fractures to his left shoulder, leg and ankle.

He had surgery on Sunday afternoon. His mother, Jenny Eagle, said nursing her son in hospital had not been a relaxing way to spend Mother's Day.

"He's very lucky to be alive.

"I think the doctors and police are quite amazed he's still alive. He'll be off work for six months," she said. "[And] the car was a write-off, I heard."

Mr Eagle had been wearing jeans and a dark t-shirt when he was struck on the rural road just after dark.

He said he accepted blame for the accident.

Senior Sergeant Ian Campion, the officer in charge of road policing in the Western Bay, described the damage to the vehicle as extensive.

Save

    Share this article

Latest from Bay of Plenty Times

Premium
Bay of Plenty Times

TUT withdraws appeal over unlawful removal of Te Urewera huts

03 Jul 05:00 PM
live
Bay of Plenty Times

Hail, storms hit North Island as emergency extends in flood-hit areas

03 Jul 05:00 PM
Bay of Plenty Times

'Needs to be killed': Gang president allegedly ordered fatal attack on fellow member

03 Jul 08:00 AM

There’s more to Hawai‘i than beaches and buffets – here’s how to see it differently

sponsored
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Latest from Bay of Plenty Times

Premium
TUT withdraws appeal over unlawful removal of Te Urewera huts

TUT withdraws appeal over unlawful removal of Te Urewera huts

03 Jul 05:00 PM

Te Uru Taumatua has withdrawn its appeal against the High Court ruling.

Hail, storms hit North Island as emergency extends in flood-hit areas
live

Hail, storms hit North Island as emergency extends in flood-hit areas

03 Jul 05:00 PM
'Needs to be killed': Gang president allegedly ordered fatal attack on fellow member

'Needs to be killed': Gang president allegedly ordered fatal attack on fellow member

03 Jul 08:00 AM
'Oh hell, yeah': Pensioner moves from leaky caravan to new elder village

'Oh hell, yeah': Pensioner moves from leaky caravan to new elder village

03 Jul 07:32 AM
From early mornings to easy living
sponsored

From early mornings to easy living

NZ Herald
  • About NZ Herald
  • Meet the journalists
  • Newsletters
  • Classifieds
  • Help & support
  • Contact us
  • House rules
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms of use
  • Competition terms & conditions
  • Our use of AI
Subscriber Services
  • Bay of Plenty Times e-edition
  • Manage your print subscription
  • Manage your digital subscription
  • Subscribe to Herald Premium
  • Subscribe to the Bay of Plenty Times
  • Gift a subscription
  • Subscriber FAQs
  • Subscription terms & conditions
  • Promotions and subscriber benefits
NZME Network
  • Bay of Plenty Times
  • The New Zealand Herald
  • The Northland Age
  • The Northern Advocate
  • Waikato Herald
  • Rotorua Daily Post
  • Hawke's Bay Today
  • Whanganui Chronicle
  • Viva
  • NZ Listener
  • Newstalk ZB
  • BusinessDesk
  • OneRoof
  • Driven Car Guide
  • iHeart Radio
  • Restaurant Hub
NZME
  • About NZME
  • NZME careers
  • Advertise with NZME
  • Digital self-service advertising
  • Book your classified ad
  • Photo sales
  • NZME Events
  • © Copyright 2025 NZME Publishing Limited
TOP