Someone Could be Killed

ON Saturday at 1am, Peter Towns was nearly home from his trip to Sydney, when he was struck in the chest by a three inch rock which had smashed through the windscreen of his truck.

The rock had been thrown by a group of three people he estimates were 15 or 16 years of age on the New England Highway.

“I was still in the 100 k zone and they were standing in the last driveway on your right as you are coming into town, there are some big rocks there and they’ve thrown one at me that got me fair in the chest, it was a good three inches or more,” said Mr Towns

“I first noticed something was wrong when the truck in front of me swerved and then I just felt this pain,” he said.

“By the time I realised I’d been hit I’d got past them and only just saw the three people in a quick glance in the lights.

“I pulled up at Airlie House to ring the police and another horse trailer pulled up behind me.

“They thought a rock had been thrown at them too but didn’t notice any damage, so it might just have been one of the horses in the float.

“What are they doing out at that time of night doing that?

“They could kill someone,” he said

“I haven’t slept real well since,” said Peter Towns.

Paul Robinson from Quirindi knows the feeling all too well.

Paul was driving his truck through Aberdeen on Friday, February 12 when a sizable rock also smashed his windshield.

“It was at about 8pm last Friday, not the one just gone, the one before and I was in the 50 zone on the south side of the BP and a rock hit my windscreen smashed it and if I had been going any faster it would have smashed right through,” said Mr Robinson.

“It was coming straight between my eyes,” he said.

“I rang the police up and they asked if I needed an ambulance and I didn’t but things could have been worse if it had hit me in the head.

“I didn’t see them, they must have been behind the trees and you’re not expecting it.

“There are so many scenarios that could have happened, if I had been knocked out I could have crashed into a house or hit someone walking along.

“Just think of others, think before you do something stupid and stop doing what you’re doing before someone gets killed.

“It gives you a sick feeling in your belly to know you’re out there doing your job, making sure food gets to town to the supermarkets, keeping things moving for everyone and something like that can happen can happen to you.

“It’s the second time it’s happened, the last time was eight years ago up in Guyra,” he said.

“It shakes you up; I didn’t flinch when it happened because you are just so shocked but it does shake you up later,” Paul Robinson said.

Local police want people to come forward with information before someone is killed and Inspector Guy Guiana said it can be anonymous.

“If you have any information you can call anonymously, we just need to make sure it stops before someone is seriously injured or killed,” said Inspector Guiana.

“It is an extremely dangerous act I believe anybody involved in it would know the danger to people,” he said.

“There is enough publicity that people know the consequences and there are serious charges involved, especially if someone is injured or killed.

“Any information in relation to the people responsible should be given to the Hunter Valley Police or Crime Stoppers.

“We would take a zero tolerance view to anyone prosecuted for it,” said Guy Guiana.

• Hunter Valley Local Area Command: 6542 6999
• Crime Stoppers: 1800 333 000