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The death of Canadian tourist Helen Poon after a crash near Hastings on December 30 left her friend Margareta Dovgal questioning how their adventure turned into a tragedy.
A give-way sign facing the wrong way and faded road markings nearly completely obscured by skid marks at the crash scene havesince been corrected, but was it too late? James Pocock reports.
A passenger in a crash near Hastings that killed her friend says it shouldn’t take a death for something to be done about dangerous intersections.
Fellow Canadian Margareta Dovgal arrived in New Zealand with her on Christmas Day to go on a road trip and visit one of Poon’s friends after they had planned to travel together for some time.
Dovgal remembers navigating from the passenger seat using Google Maps as the Audi TT travelled along SH50 on Roys Hill Rd, then on to the intersection where the road merges with Maraekakaho Rd.
The crash itself was a rush of chaos, but she remembers the kindness of those first on the scene and her panic.
It wasn’t until she gave her statement to police that she began to notice things were off with the intersection - the first being that the give way sign faced in the wrong direction.
“I remember asking ‘what does that mean?’ It says these guys have to yield, what do you mean we have to yield, it doesn’t make any sense to me,” Dovgal said.
Looking at Google Maps images later on, she realised there used to be two give way signs, but one was missing and the other was the one she had seen facing in the wrong direction at the time of the crash.
Pictures taken shortly after the crash show the painted markings on the road had also faded and were heavily obscured by skid marks.
“A lot of stuff seemed to go wrong that enabled this to happen and it is more clarity, but a lot of frustration and anger as well that all these things had to go wrong for this to take place,” Dovgal claimed.
A NZ Transport Agency Waka Kotahi (NZTA) spokesman said it was too early to comment as the investigation is ongoing.
The scene of the crash shortly afterward. One of the give way signs was missing, while the other had been turned to face the wrong way. Burnout marks obscure markings on the road. Photo / Margareta Dovgal
The intersection appears to have been repainted since the crash, while the give way sign now faces the correct way.
Dovgal, who works in public policy, said it shouldn’t take deaths or serious casualties before an issue is addressed.
“I don’t want to mischaracterise this, but if there is only a willingness to resolve critical issues like this after life-changing accidents happen, that is a failure.
“If there is already a proactive approach in place, that needs to be intensified. People need to have confidence in that system. It is the responsibility of everybody who uses the road to be responsible, but drivers aren’t responsible for signage.”
The intersection has since been repainted and the give way sign's orientation has been corrected since the crash. Photo / Paul Taylor
She said she had been in touch with the people in the other vehicle and their family since the incident and they had been supportive.
The crash had been “life-changing” for everyone involved.
“It is obviously incredibly unfair for everyone who loved Helen and Helen herself, it is just terrible that so many people have had life-changing experiences as a result of [the crash].”
Dovgal first met Poon while Poon was campaigning to become a Member of the Legislative Assembly of British Columbia.
“I really expected to be friends for very many years, so it felt like the beginning of a hopefully lifelong friendship and it is still hard to believe that is not going to happen.”
As recently as July 2020, the intersection had two give way signs visible, clear road markings and signage. By the time of the crash, burnouts had obscured the road markings, one give way sign was missing and the other was turned backwards. Photo / Google Maps
She said she had told Helen before the crash that she would like to live in Aotearoa someday, but now she just hopes she can feel safe enough to return.
“I don’t want my overall willingness to do things that I love, go places I love, to be permanently affected by this. I am afraid of being in cars right now, I am really scared.
“I think only time will tell.”
She said she had not heard from the police again since the accident, although she had tried contacting them and NZTA.
According to NZTA data, four non-injury crashes were recorded in 2019 at the intersection of SH50 and Maraekakaho Rd.
James Pocock joined Hawke’s Bay Today in 2021 and writes breaking news and features, with a focus on environment, local government and post-cyclone issues in the region. He has a keen interest in finding the bigger picture in research and making it more accessible to audiences. He lives in Napier. james.pocock@nzme.co.nz
