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Home / New Zealand

Tauranga father's road safety message after daughter badly injured riding to school

Sandra Conchie
By Sandra Conchie
Multimedia Journalist, Bay of Plenty Times·Bay of Plenty Times·
5 Oct, 2021 05:20 PM4 mins to read

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Mount Maunganui parent Felipe Vidal wants to publicly thank members of the public who stopped to help her 14-year-old daughter injured after being hit by a motorbike.

"It probably has been the scariest and most frightening experience of my life."

These are the words of Tauranga father Felipe Vidal, 39, whose 14-year-old daughter Sophia was badly injured after a collision with a motorbike at the intersection of Tweed and Aberdeen Sts in Mount Maunganui about 8.40am on September 29.

Vidal said Sophia had left home about five minutes earlier on her pushbike heading to school at Mount Maunganui College when he realised there was a commotion at the intersection about 20 metres away.

He looked out the window and saw people gathered around someone lying in the middle of the road and immediately thought "that can't be good".

Vidal said he then saw a pushbike in the middle of the intersection.

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"In a panic, I ran out of the house for a closer look and instantly realised that it was Sophia lying motionless on the road with lots of people trying to help her."

Someone was on the phone talking to St John ambulance and other people were directing traffic on both sides of the road, he said.

"I was so shocked and so scared, and I think we are all still in shock over the collision."

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Vidal said Sophia was conscious and talking, but clearly in a lot of pain.

"My daughter is now in a cast up to her left knee after breaking her ankle bone and she has scratches and bruises everywhere, including on her hands and legs," he said.

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Vidal said Sophia, a Year 9 student at the college, was doing okay, but she was still in pain and frustrated about missing her classes at school.

This week she would have a medical check-up to see whether she needed surgery to repair the fracture, he said.

"I'm not sure whether she bumped her head as she hit the road but I'm so thankful my daughter always wears her helmet as it did its job and protected her head from serious injury."

Vidal said he rode a pushbike almost every day, for exercise and when taking his sons, aged 2 and 5, to kindergarten.

"I see many people not wearing a helmet or high-visibility gear, including adults. I know that if Sophia had not been wearing her helmet it could have been quite a different story."

He said he wanted to say a huge thanks to those who came to help Sophia.

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Vidal, who owns Translations New Zealand, said he also wanted to remind people a helmet was a must no matter how far the trip.

"Doesn't matter whether you are only going down the road, you just never know when you might fall off or get hit. Even the most experienced rider needs to wear one."

Sophia's mangled bike and her helmet needed replacing, he said.

Vidal said he also wanted to publicly thank the motorcyclist, who also suffered abrasions and bruising, for stopping and getting in touch to ask how his daughter was later.

"As a father, it has probably been the scariest and most frightening experience of my life.

"This was an accident, and accidents do happen when you least expect it. I am pleading with people to always wear a helmet and other safety gear, as it can save your life."

That's the road safety message the police also endorsed.

A police spokesperson said the police wanted to reiterate Waka Kotahi NZTA's road safety messages, which included being fully aware of other road users.

NZTA also said it was important for cyclists and motorbike riders to make eye contact with drivers and pedestrians, ride at least 1m out from parked cars, and always follow the road rules.

Cyclists, in particular, should watch out for car doors opening, potholes, rubbish, grates, and pedestrians, and check for left-turning vehicles, use hand signals and a bell.

Police said the crash was still being investigated and no charges had been laid.

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