Highway horror - Woman nearly crashed after man stones her car

A St Andrew woman is advising motorists to be cautious of their surroundings when travelling along the Mandela Highway after a man threw a rock which smashed her car windows, causing injuries to her chest and face on Tuesday.

Sydonnie Simms said that the incident occurred shortly after exiting the Caymanas leg of Highway 2000.

“I drove a left-hand vehicle, and I had just exited the toll and was starting the Mandela Highway when a man throw a large stone through the driver side of my car and shattered my car glass. I was so frightened, I honestly don’t know how I didn’t lose control of the car. He just threw it and scampered off into the bushes. I honestly can’t say if he was someone of unsound mind, because everything happened so fast. All I know is that I felt my face and chest burning, only to realise that the shattered glass had cut me up, ” she said.

An extremely frightened Simms said that she stopped a short distance away, where she was assisted by a fruit vendor who told her that several persons had suffered a similar fate recently.

Simms told THE WEEKEND STAR that she did not file a police report, but drove home to nurse her cuts. She advised drivers, especially women, to drive with their windows up.

“A direct hit from a stone or any other object that the person is hurling can cause serious injuries or even death. I could have gone blind, or probably if my window wasn’t up, the stone would have hit me in my head, ” she said.

Be on the lookout

She also implored the police to be on the lookout for the culprit, who she believes will continue to terrorise drivers.

“The authorities need to put things in place to stop these vicious attacks against motorists, because this may continue until someone loses their life. It doesn’t make any sense until several lives are taken before they start to act. It can’t be so hard to catch the culprit(s). They need to set up an operation and catch the person(s) in the act,” she said.

Head of the Corporate Communications Unit, Senior Superintendent of Police Stephanie Lindsay, said she has not received any reports of such incidents and urged persons to make reports to the nearest police stations.

“I am also advising that once the vehicle is not damaged to the point where it cannot be driven, the driver should continue driving until they reach the nearest police station and report the matter. Do not stop, especially if the place is lonely, to assess the damage, because the person who threw the stone may just do it for you to stop. But always report these incidents to the police,” she said.