Newgale campsite crash: Three people in hospital

Three people are in hospital after a car crashed into a campsite and injured nine people, police have said.

A Ford Fiesta left the road and hit a tent with people inside at a campsite in Newgale, Pembrokeshire, on Saturday night.

Dyfed-Powys Police said investigations into the incident were continuing and no arrests had been made.

A baby that was asleep in the tent hit by the car escaped serious injury as it was in a cot, the campsite owner said.

The car went over a ditch, rolled into a tent and over a group of people.

Police have said the crash happened just after 22:30 BST, with passengers in the car among the injured.

The road's speed limit changes from a 60mph (100km/h) to 30mph (50km/h) just beside the entrance to the campsite, with tents just a few feet away from passing cars.

Campsite owner Mike Harris told BBC Radio Wales he reviewed CCTV afterwards to make sense of the situation.

He said: "I couldn't believe this car, how it had been speeding so fast down the road from the Roch area through a 30mph zone and then left the road."

The car veered into the campsite just after the point where the speed limit changes from 60mph to 30mph

Fern Wilson, who was nearby when the crash happened, said children screaming after the crash was the "scariest thing".

"There was a little girl that got hurt and there was a lot of young girls in the car... they were pretty much in shock so they were crying and screaming," she said.

Joshua Tam, a firefighter who was also at the campsite, said he ran over to the scene following the crash and helped lift the car.

"I was just trying to help do what I could... there were already three or four people there."

Adriana de Pertis was staying at the campsite on Saturday and says she "heard lots of people yelling and then you could see everyone's little headtorches from the window running towards the incident".

"Although there was people screaming, there was blood, there was crying, there were still a lot of people at the incidents that were able to help".

Councillor Peter Morgan added: "It's a miracle that nobody is killed, that's the main thing.

"It wasn't a very good scene to look at, but the people there were thankfully a couple of medics who were staying on site that night, and thankfully they were there to help."

Mr Morgan said a planned new road - several years in the making - needed to be looked at "sooner rather than later".

He added: "I think you can look at things but you can't warrant for a car allegedly speeding and rolling over on a campsite."

A cordon was placed around a collapsed tent on Saturday night as investigators surveyed the scene

Mr Harris runs the campsite with his wife Clare, who said the car tried to brake as it came down a hill.

"It flipped and rolled several times, and crashed into the tent," she said.

"There was a young child, a baby, in the tent at the time. Thankfully they are OK."

The car had to be lifted to free casualties beneath according to Mr Harris, who said despite being seriously injured it could have been a "lot worse".

He said it was "fortunate" there were firefighters and two surgeons staying on the campsite who were "able to take charge and make the best of the situation".

Mr Harris added he was "very impressed" with the speed and response of the emergency services, with about 15 vehicles on the scene quickly.

One person was airlifted to the University Hospital of Wales in Cardiff by a coastguard rescue helicopter, the Welsh Ambulance Service said.

Six ambulances were sent to the scene, and five other people were taken to hospital by paramedics.

Four of the patients were taken to Glangwili General Hospital in Carmarthen, and another one to Morriston Hospital, Swansea.

Mid and West Wales Fire and Rescue Service also sent a crew to the scene.

Dyfed-Powys Police said it was "continuing to investigate the incident which occurred in Newgale on Saturday evening".

At the scene

A mixture of young families and surfers are waking up at Newgale Campsite on a grey rainy morning as the investigation continues into the cause of the accident.

Owner Mike Harris showed me CCTV of the incident - you can see a car apparently travelling at considerable speed before crossing the carriageway, flipping over a ditch and landing on a tent.

Mr Harris said he felt blessed that two surgeons and a firefighter were on site at the time of the accident to deal with the wounded.

In response to concerns about the safety of the road, Mr Harris said he would welcome traffic calming measures such as a sleeping policeman just before the 30mph zone starts next to his campsite.

A Welsh Government spokesperson said: "Our thoughts are with everyone affected by this incident. We are unable to comment while police investigations continue."

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