KEY POINTS:
A driver clocked doing nearly 200km/h on an icy road yesterday fled from police after crashing.
Police called his actions "straight-out lunacy" after he took off from a patrol and passed a truck on a blind corner near Palmerston, about 60km north of Dunedin.
Senior Constable Bruce Dow said he clocked the car, a silver Nissan Cefiro, at 197km/h. Otago's roads were treacherous after snow last week.
A witness reported seeing the car travelling through Palmerston at well over the 50km/h speed limit.
The driver came to a stop after losing control just south of Palmerston and hitting a road sign beforereversing for 150m down a farm track, ending up with two flat tyres.
Two people from the car took off on foot into bush bordering the highway. Police were searching for the pair last night.
-OTAGO DAILY TIMES
