Grieving husband: think before you drink-drive

By Selma Milovanovic. May 30, 2006

Before dawn on Sunday, Peter Thomson was asleep at a campsite deep in the South Gippsland bush when two police came to deliver the grim news that would change his life forever — his wife had died and his stepdaughter and sister-in-law had been seriously injured when a runaway car crashed into them.

In the frantic two days since, Mr Thomson has wondered what makes people drink and drive and in what circumstances licences should be immediately suspended. Glenda Thomson, 49, was killed instantly when the utility struck a group of partygoers as they walked home from her cousin’s 21st birthday in Korumburra about 1.30am on Sunday.

Her daughter, Tara Wells-Thomson, 24, and sister, Michelle Hurst, 47, were seriously injured. The driver, who initially left the scene and parked his utility nearby, later contacted police and has been interviewed. His blood-alcohol level is believed to have been recorded at about twice the legal limit.

A tearful Mr Thomson yesterday said the accident should be a warning to anybody who thought drink-driving was acceptable. “Think first. Just a couple of beers and (they’re) 10-foot tall and bulletproof, they think, but the mind doesn’t,” he said.

“Think about the damage you can cause to people. So much damage, wreck so many lives, just from one stupid decision.” Mr Thomson called on authorities to automatically suspend drivers’ licences in such cases. “How can someone kill someone … and with a BAC (blood alcohol content) of over 0.05, not be locked up? He can get into the car and go to work the next day. That seems wrong,” he said.

Mr Thomson said his wife of eight years was a “beautiful person with a beautiful soul” who was much loved in the Korumburra community. The adored mother of three had worked as an aged-care nurse for 25 years. After he said his final goodbye to his wife, Mr Thomson yesterday had to tell his injured stepdaughter that her mother had died. “She’d been asking all morning, ‘Where’s my mum?’ ”

Police have interviewed a 28-year-old Leongatha man. He is expected to be charged on summons with driving offences. The Age believes he would lose his licence immediately if charged with culpable driving. Licences of drink drivers whose BAC is .115 or more are automatically suspended but it is believed the driver’s blood alcohol content was less than that. Ms Wells-Thomson, whose legs were broken, is in the Royal Melbourne Hospital.

Ms Hurst, who received serious head injuries, is in a stable condition in The Alfred hospital.

Tragic Update: June 2: Second fatality from ute accident

By Julie Tullberg June 02, 2006

A SECOND woman has died after a ute hit a crowd of party revellers as they walked home from a 21st birthday in Victoria on Sunday. Glenda Thompson, 49, of Warragul, was killed as she walked along Richard Street in Korumburra, southeast of Melbourne on May 28, while her sister, daughter and her daughter’s boyfriend were seriously injured.

But tonight, 47-year-old Michelle Hurst, of Korumburra, died in The Alfred hospital’s intensive care unit after she failed to recover from extensive head injuries. Ms Hurst, the sister of Ms Thompson, was airlifted to The Alfred with critical injuries. Police said the four pedestrians were on their way home about 1.30am (AEST) when the ute ploughed into them.

“It was certainly a very tragic and hectic scene,” Sergeant Jim Baum from the Bass Coast Traffic Management Unit had said. “We had 80-120 people who were all extremely emotional, in a small town where everybody knows each other.” The driver, a 28-year-old from Leongatha, is helping police with the investigation, police said today. Sgt Baum said the driver tried to flee the scene but only travelled a short distance before he was arrested. Ms Thompson’s 24-year-old daughter, Tara Wells-Thompson, of Warragul, suffered a compound fracture of the leg.

Scott Edwards, a 29-year-old from Safety Beach, was taken to Korumburra Hospital with a fractured jaw. The death brings Victoria’s road toll to 136, 23 less than the same time last year.