Rudely awoken again

A Carterton couple jolted from sleep for the second time in 12 years by a suspected drunk driver smashing into their bedroom are calling on the Carterton District Council to make their home safe.
Robbie and Chris Davies were startled awake about 12.30am yesterday by the impact. They found an apologetic driver staring at them from behind the wheel _ when police arrived the man, 20, was breathalysed at 721mcg of alcohol per litre of breath, almost twice the legal limit.
''I thought it was a big earthquake, Chris sat up in a big hurry, and then I realise nothing's moving. I look out of the window and there he was. I was thinking, 'You stupid boy'. I told him he was stupid,'' Mr Davies said.
Carterton Senior Constable Paul Dallinger said the couple had been lucky not to have been injured.
Mr Dallinger said the man had been driving down Augustus St and had barrelled straight through the T-intersection without braking. He said the man, who had been charged with drunk driving, didn't appear to have been speeding but had not braked and had offered no explanation for the smash.
However, Mr Davies has his own theory on why two drunk drivers have violated the sanctuary of his bedroom _ he reckons addled drivers probably think they are driving along Lincoln Rd, which runs parallel to Pembroke St.
Contractors were yesterday inspecting the home's shaken foundations through the hole punched in the house in the latest smash.
Mr Davies said the man _ like his predecessor 12 years ago _ had apologised profusely and the couple had made sure to check he was okay and that the car ''wasn't going to burst into flames''.
The couple said it had taken about half an hour before shock had set in. They had then called police from their phone, which had been knocked from the wall by the impact.
Mrs Davies said she hoped the driver would lose his licence and said the $500 fine and six months disqualification handed to the last driver who invaded the property wasn't good enough. She would like to see the council put up protective bollards and fluorescent signage outside her property _ failing that, she joked that a motion-sensitive machinegun might be a useful deterrent.
''I think I'll have to go and have a beer with my mate Gary [McPhee, Carterton Mayor],'' Mr Davies said.
Mr McPhee wasn't able to be contacted yesterday but Carterton District Council chief executive officer Colin Wright said he would send roading engineers to assess whether anything could be done at the intersection. ''But obviously we can't be held responsible for drunk drivers,'' Mr Wright said.