Doing it in Whakaoriori…

[Kiwithrottlejockey]

from the Wairarapa Times-Age....

Man evades police after smashing into petrol station

9:54AM - Sunday, 17 July 2016


The roof of the Solway Caltex petrol station, Masterton, collapsed after a pillar
holding it up was hit by a vehicle traveling at high speed.

THE ROOF of a Masterton service station collapsed after a driver fleeing police smashed into a petrol bowser and support beam.

Police say the driver then left the scene on foot after the incident, which happened at Caltex on High Street just before 7.30am on Sunday.

The fire service closed High Street for a short time, with the road reopening at around 8.45am.

Police say they had earlier been called regarding a disturbance at a Masterton residence.

As police arrived, the man was seen leaving in his car.

When officers activated their sirens to signal the man to pull over, the driver accelerated and turned into the petrol station.

The man appears to have misjudged the turn, mounted the kerb, and driven into a petrol bowser and forecourt support beam, police said.

The roof of the forecourt subsequently partially collapsed.

Police immediately secured the scene and ensured there was no risk to public safety.

The crash did not result in any petrol leakage from tanks, and nobody was injured.

The man has not yet been located but police say they know his identity.

http://www.nzherald.co.nz/wairarapa-times-age/news/article.cfm?c_id=1503414&objectid=11676145

[Kiwithrottlejockey]

from Fairfax NZ....

SUV careers through Masterton petrol station
taking out pump and canopy

By PIERS FULLER | 12:26PM - Sunday, 17 July 2016


Workers and emergency services personnel were quick to secure the scene
and start the clean-up. — Photograph: Piers Fuller/Fairfax NZ.

AN attendant was just seconds away from being hit by a vehicle that ploughed through a petrol pump and structural pillar at a Masterton petrol station forecourt causing the canopy to crash down.

The staff member had been working near the pump at Solway Caltex on High Street about 7.30am on Sunday moments before a black Ford Territory being pursued by police entered the forecourt. It careered straight through and crashed into a fence on the other side of the property.

The driver then fled on foot.

Senior sergeant Mike Sutton of Wairarapa police said the petrol station worker was standing just metres away near the doors of the shop when the car came through and the roof came down.

“It was a terrifying, according to him. It happened very quickly and there was debris flying and he was lucky he was not hit by it. He had been in the vicinity of the bowser just before it happened,” he says.


Several fire engines attended the crash. No fuel was spilt when the petrol bowser
was knocked over. — Photograph: Piers Fuller/Fairfax NZ.

The broken petrol pump did not spill any fuel and the attendant was able to shut down the system immediately, Sutton said.

Police had been travelling to a domestic incident on High St just north of the crash when the patrol car decided to follow a vehicle that had just driven out of the house they were called to.

The patrol car activated its lights to signal the driver to pull over, but the SUV continued driving south.

Police then followed the vehicle for a short period at normal speeds until it suddenly sped off and unexpectedly veered right into the petrol station, Sutton said.

Several fire engines attended the incident and the forecourt was securely fenced off by mid-morning.


The service station attendant was metres from being hit by the car that careered
through the forecourt. — Photograph: Piers Fuller/Fairfax NZ.

High Street, which forms part of State Highway 2 through Masterton, was closed for a short period and then reopened around 9am.

Police are still hunting the man who fled on foot.

The policeman in the pursuing patrol car was unable to chase the suspect in the wake of the crash because the officer's first priority was to check for the safety of personnel and secure the area, Sutton said.

“The man has not yet been located by police, but police know his identity and will be looking to speak with him at the first available opportunity.”

Caltex Solway petrol station owner Kevin Dudson said the main thing was that everyone was safe and he was glad that his staff member was able do everything that he was trained to do and secure the area.

He said the entire canopy would have to be removed, as well as the pumps, while repairs were done. He expects the service station to be closed for at least a week.

http://www.stuff.co.nz/national/crime/82180444