Trees prevent car from hitting house in Governors Bay near Christchurch

Resident Terry White heard tyres screeching then a bang. He went outside to see a car in the trees just above his house. Photo / Andrew King

A Governors Bay resident had a sleepless night after a car came close to hitting the side of his house where his daughter's bedrooms are on Friday.

A man and woman were driving up Dyers Pass Rd at about 8.50pm when their car went off the road and down the bank on the right-hand side, before coming to a halt in trees, which prevented it from hitting the house.

Resident Terry White, who lives in the property the vehicle came close to, said it was a scary experience.

The car spun around and ended up over the bank. Trees prevented it from hitting a house below. Photo / Andrew King, Christchurch Star

"I heard the tyres screeching, then a bang. I came outside to see headlights in my backyard, which is never good," he said.

Mr White has two daughters, who were both asleep in their rooms when the crash happened.

"My youngest woke up pretty frightened and would get back to sleep, so it was a long night for us," he said.

Both the driver and passenger were uninjured, though visibly shaken, Mr White said.

"She wasn't saying anything, it must have been quite a frightening experience," he said.

Ropes were used to keep the car from sliding any further down the bank. It is expected to be removed on Saturday. Photo / Andrew King, Christchurch Star

Firefighters secured the car using ropes to make sure it would not slide any further down the bank on Friday night with the plan to remove the car on Saturday.

"They have secured it so it won't pose any danger to the house below," Governors Bay chief fire officer Andrew Norris said.

Mr White said there had been another crash the week before about 100m up the road.

A motorist was coming down Dyers Pass Rd at about 10pm on Monday when he hit the barrier on the left-hand side of the road, taking out a number of barrier poles.

The driver was uninjured in the crash.

"He was going pretty quick, lucky the barrier was there otherwise he would have ended up in our neighbour's property," Mr White said.

A vehicle hit the barrier about 100m up the road from Friday night's crash about a week ago. Photo / Andrew King, Christchurch Star

He said he would be making contact with the city council to ask if the barrier can be extended past his property to prevent more vehicles coming over the side of the road, endangering his family home.

"Something needs to be done. There is a serious problem of cars speeding up and down this road. Maybe it's time we installed speed bumps," he said.