The damaged bus stop at the site of the Half Moon Bay crash. Photo: RNZ / Felix Walton
Half Moon Bay residents are in shock after a car drove into a bus stop and injured several people in East Auckland
The bus stop on Prince Regent Street was badly damaged when a car swerved off the road and rammed into a woman about 5.30pm on Sunday.
Two people were treated at the scene and four more were taken to hospital and remain in stable condition.
A witness, who asked not to be named, said he went to help the injured woman.
"I just ran out and the bus stop had taken some damage," he said.
"There was a [woman] sitting on the ground, so I went over to try and assist her but she was unresponsive because she was in shock."
The woman passed her phone to him, he said.
"She was already on the phone with police, so I took over the phone call and gave them a rundown of the situation."
The witness said more residents rushed outside to help, but the driver returned and tried to ram the group.
"Members of the public who had come out to assist... the vehicle came back for another go and that's when [the driver] smacked into the group of people," he said.
"Then he [got out of] the vehicle and ran up the road where members of the public apprehended him."
Neighbours Glenn and Deborah arrived at the scene a few minutes later. They said the aftermath was heartbreaking.
"It [was] very sad, we saw people on the ground," Deborah said.
"Yeah, they were tending to each other," Glenn said. "There was one man in particular who was covered in blood, he looked quite distressed."
Glenn said he was relieved the driver was caught.
"People that witnessed it chased him, because he left his vehicle and ran," he said.
"They caught him, which is excellent, the community came together."
The wider community was horrified by the incident.
"Pretty devastating [for] the neighbourhood that someone would want to drive a car into people at a bus stop," said one man.
"We have to be careful that this doesn't happen more as we get closer to Christmas," another said. "People have to have regard for others if they go out celebrating."
Others felt unsafe walking in their neighbourhood.
"I do have to be careful, because there are those people who think they own the road," another resident said.
"It worries me that this sort of thing can happen," said another. "It's disgusting."
A 22-year-old man appeared in Manukau District Court on Monday afternoon on charges including wounding with intent to cause grievous bodily harm, driving while drunk, and failing to stop.
The court heard the man knew the woman who was first injured and his breath test showed he was three times over the legal alcohol limit.
The accused told Judge Richard McIlraith he did not remember anything.
He was denied bail, granted interim name suppression and has been remanded in custody to reappear on 22 December.
