The bus crashed into a concrete fence outside two Lower Hutt homes in November last year. Photo / File
The bus crashed into a concrete fence outside two Lower Hutt homes in November last year. Photo / File
A bus driver may have fallen asleep in the moments before a crash that resulted in one passenger losing teeth, and another fearing they would be "engulfed in flames".
Driver Gloria Kororia Haapu was today discharged without conviction by Judge Anthony Walsh who said the crash was probably caused by the 58-year-old's post-accident diagnosis of sleep apnea, and a failure to put on her seatbelt.
Haapu, who had started her shift on bus route 150 at 7am, was driving the bus in central Lower Hutt at around 11am. when she took her seatbelt off to assist a potential passenger in a wheelchair.
The passenger then decided they did not want to climb on board so Haapu got back into her seat but, concious of the time and keeping to the bus schedule, forgot to put her seatbelt back on.
Around five seconds after accelerating from the stop the bus collided with a parked car on Knights Rd in Lower Hutt at a speed of about 10-20km/h
CCTV footage showed Haapu being thrown from the driver's seat towards the bus door where she was unable to gain control of the bus as it crossed the road.
Some passengers were thrown to the floor when the bus hopped the kerb and crashed into a concrete fence. A woman who was holding on to a seat hit her face on it - the impact knocking out two of her teeth and causing facial bruising.
The bus crashed into a concrete fence outside two Lower Hutt homes in November last year. Photo / File
One passenger said in a victim impact statement the bus started to make weird noises when it turned onto Knights Rd, before it shuddered and rolled sideways.
The victim, who suffered bruising, said her injuries were both physical and psychological.
"I had a dreaded fear we would crash and be engulfed in flames."
She said she continues to go over the crash in her mind, and while on board prayed for the safety of herself and other passengers.
Judge Walsh said in the Hutt Valley District Court today that after the crash Haapu was examined by a paramedic and was diagnosed with sleep apnea, a condition he believes contributed to the defendant's "momentary lapse of concentration".
It appeared she might have fallen asleep for a couple of seconds before the collision.
Haapu had written apology letters to the victims and was ordered by the court to pay both passengers $250 in emotional harm reparations.
Judge Walsh said it was clear the passengers found the crash frightening and traumatic, but that a conviction was a penalty that would outweigh the level of offending.
Since the crash Haapu has sought help from a doctor for her condition, which is ongoing.
Haapu had been a bus driver for seven years and was off work for eight months after the crash.
She has since undergone retraining and assessment for work, which according to Judge Walsh had passed with "flying colours".
It would be hard for Haapu to find employment and if convicted would run the risk of losing her job and livelihood – an outcome that far outweighed the scale of her offending, Judge Walsh said.
