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Driver fury over A338 closure (From Thisisdorset)
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Driver fury over A338 closure
8:11am Thursday 19th March 2009
MOTORISTS were caught in a jam for three hours after a baby suffered serious injuries in a single vehicle accident that closed the A338 Spur Road southbound.
Police said the eight-month-old baby boy sustained a serious foot wound and was taken to Poole Hospital, then Salisbury Hospital for specialist treatment.
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His 19-year-old mother from Bournemouth suffered suspected back and whiplash injuries after their blue Renault Clio ended up on its roof.
She got herself and her baby out of the vehicle at around 7.10am yesterday. A paramedic car and two ambulances attended.
The road was shut southbound between the B3073 Blackwater junction and the Cooper Dean flyover from around 7.30am until around 10.50am.
One motorist said he thought it must have been a multiple car pile up as it had taken him more than four hours to get to work.
Another said she was “beyond furious” after being stuck on a bus for one hour and 20 mins.
Around 50 people missed EasyJet and Ryanair flights to Malaga and Geneva leaving from Bournemouth airport.
Sergeant Nikki Burt, of the Ferndown traffic department, said they had to close the road until the extent of the baby’s injuries was established: “There is only one opportunity to secure evidence,” she said.
“The whole carriageway was closed to ensure the safety of the public and the emergency services at the scene. Dorset Police is always appreciative of the public’s patience.”
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Your Say YourDorset
ry8000, Bournemouth says...
9:28am Thu 19 Mar 09
Problem is we're all living in a health & safety nanny state. I'm surprised we're allowed to leave home each day without goggles, hard hat, gloves, and orange jacket!
magicmonkey, Bournemouth says...
9:49am Thu 19 Mar 09
The mum and baby got out so they should have shifted the car as soon as possible
I sped past a queue 6 miles long going southbound
Aviewoneverything, Bournemouth says...
10:13am Thu 19 Mar 09
Most importantly, I hope mum and baby are well. Lets hope those complaining are never in similar situations.
crispy_pants, Canford Heath says...
10:48am Thu 19 Mar 09
I think the police should close all roads at least once a month to count the number of bits of gravel. They could also collect the cigarette butts and DNA test them. The evidence could be used for later prosecutions. Think of the amount of money they could make. Oh, maybe not, I suppose they wouldn't issue any speeding tickets.
Derf, Wallisdown says...
11:03am Thu 19 Mar 09
Surely impatient onlookers are hardly qualified to say how severe an accident is, or how it should be investigated.
ry8000, Bournemouth says...
12:11pm Thu 19 Mar 09
Derf wrote:I think we should question the decisions of the so called "authority" and we do have a right to complain (expert or not), it's called democracy. So, either get over it or vote Labour again, then you'll get the socialist society that you dream about...
Although the parties involved were taken to hospital with minor injuries, the police do not know that at the time. Should (heaven forbid) the condition of mother or baby have deteriorated in hospital and either had died (which is not unknown to have happened in past accidents) the crash site would then become a crime scene, if all the evidence had been cleared up as soon as the ambulance left the scene, vital evidence would be missed. It's better to be thorough when the oppertunity presents itself, than be hasty so as to appease a few commuters. Surely impatient onlookers are hardly qualified to say how severe an accident is, or how it should be investigated.
terry1965, bournemouth says...
1:14pm Thu 19 Mar 09
I wasted two hours of my day sat in a jam going nowhere yesterday as a result of this failure when I could have easily found an alternative route.
I appreciate the accident was after the Blackwater turn off, but surely the police have enough common sense to realise the volume of traffic heading into Bournemouth at that time of day would result in chaos.
I don't want to hear excuses from Dorset police.
I want an apology & the promise of a review of policy for similar accidents in future.
FlamingCarbuncle, Southbourne says...
4:34pm Thu 19 Mar 09
GET A GRIP PEOPLE!!!
Horridbloke, Bournemouth says...
5:02pm Thu 19 Mar 09
FlamingCarbuncle wrote:The occupants of the car, including the baby, were out of the car and safe (from traffic risks at least) by the time the police turned up at the scene. They would not have been endangered in any way by opening up the clear lane. Get a grip yourself.
What is more important, getting to work on timE, or the life of an innocent 8 month old baby. GET A GRIP PEOPLE!!!
Xchurch-man, Christchurch says...
5:49pm Thu 19 Mar 09
I am sure the delay is as long so that the police can fill out dozens of forms with nice big boxes to tick, to prove they have met all their targets. They can then show us what a brilliant job they are doing with OUR money.
Get the roads open, the traffic moving and then go and catch some real criminals.
Taffytim, Bournemouth says...
5:54pm Thu 19 Mar 09
I think we are all missing the bigger picture on this one.
The accident happened just after the Blackwater junction, just by the sewage works.
Blackwater junction is the worst junction that I come across on my travels, and Im on the road for about 50 hours a week.
Something seriously needs to be done about it. Experienced local drivers know to expect cars coming out of Blackwater and most tend to get in the outside lane if possible to allow ease of access for the joining traffic.
Inexperienced drivers and non-local drivers get caught out by this road system all the time. The slip road is far too short and it should have been altered when they altered the slip road off a couple of years back.
Until this is done there will continue to be near misses, minor accidents, serious accidents and fatalities on this stretch of road.
What will it take to get a longer slip road in place?
terry1965, bournemouth says...
7:10pm Thu 19 Mar 09
Taffytim wrote:You are 100% correct.
I went past this accident at 9.30 and also thought that it must have been a fatality, so Im glad all involved are on the road to recovery. I think we are all missing the bigger picture on this one. The accident happened just after the Blackwater junction, just by the sewage works. Blackwater junction is the worst junction that I come across on my travels, and Im on the road for about 50 hours a week. Something seriously needs to be done about it. Experienced local drivers know to expect cars coming out of Blackwater and most tend to get in the outside lane if possible to allow ease of access for the joining traffic. Inexperienced drivers and non-local drivers get caught out by this road system all the time. The slip road is far too short and it should have been altered when they altered the slip road off a couple of years back. Until this is done there will continue to be near misses, minor accidents, serious accidents and fatalities on this stretch of road. What will it take to get a longer slip road in place?
PokesdownMark, Bournemouth says...
7:50pm Thu 19 Mar 09
And this police statement... does this mean they do not start to investigate until someone dies or takes a serious downturn? That can't be right. In this case the people involved were able to talk. It is not like there was a mystery car involved that had happened to have dropped a rare type of indicator lens that happened to enable identification of the exact car and exact driver. In fact, how many times does that happen.
Really. Take some photos and video. Mark the tyre prints with that stuff they use. Then sweep away the debris and open one lane. How hard can that be. Even if it took 40 to 50 mins. An hour maybe. But four hours? Four. Its just not right.
sparkmint, bournemouth says...
9:48pm Thu 19 Mar 09
sparkmint, bournemouth says...
9:53pm Thu 19 Mar 09
West Howe Sean, Bournemouth says...
11:05pm Thu 19 Mar 09
They just mirrors sociaty's desire to place blame and gain retribution.
It seems accidents no longer happen.
We live in a sad and broken world. The police contribute to the breakdown of values and trust. They have become part of the problem rather than part of the solution.
Another by-product of our corrupt and morally bankrupt Labour government.
terry1965, bournemouth says...
11:24pm Thu 19 Mar 09
The accident happened at 7-10am. I joined the queue at 8-30am & was stuck for two hours. No police at Ashley Heath diverting traffic away. WHY?
The_Flying_Trouser, Verwood says...
9:13am Fri 20 Mar 09
The bottom line here, regardless of your feelings toward the authoritative agencies such as the Police, is that a young mother and her baby son have quite horrific injuries that could have been life threatening if not treated as soon as possible.
Yes, the police should have been a bit more pro-active, maybe in shutting the A338 at Ashley Heath and maybe being a bit quicker at the scene gathering evidence, but what the hell can we do about it?
Does it really help to exacerbate our feelings about being so badly held up by moaning and bleating about it?
You can be pretty **** sure that the way the authorities operate in such situations is in no way going to be altered by their knowledge of your inconvenience.
Get a little perspective and thank your incredibly lucky stars that you weren't a little further down the Spur Road at that time in the morning, because in a heartbeat, it could so easily have been you.
Spare a thought for the little mite and his desperately worried mother and family.
The_Flying_Trouser, Verwood says...
9:18am Fri 20 Mar 09
Pretty innocuous, I would have thought, but there you go.
x-man, christchurch says...
9:55am Fri 20 Mar 09
magicmonkey wrote:YOUR LAST SENTENCE SUMS UP YOUR MENTALITY,IDIOT!!!!!
I saw the accident going northbound didn't look too bad just one car. The mum and baby got out so they should have shifted the car as soon as possible I sped past a queue 6 miles long going southbound
!
rook, wimborne says...
3:04pm Fri 20 Mar 09
for so long, can anyone explain why the police would close the road for any longer than is
absolutely necessary?
I know I am about to get deluged with plenty of quotes saying how they are incompetent etc etc,
but can they really be doing anything they do not have to do which adds to the time it takes to
get the traffic moving again? Surely they aim for what everyone wants which is to have
traffic flowing smoothly along all the county's roads.
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2Much...again!, Ringwood says...
8:26am Thu 19 Mar 09
More patronising will help..lol