Family ‘lucky to escape serious injury’ as car ploughs into Longton home

Published 29/12/2023 · Updated 29/12/2023

A chef has told how his family were lucky to escape serious injury after a car ploughed into his home – as he was making curries. Trev Robinson says the two-car crash just two days before Christmas left him with a ‘car sticking out of his house’. The 42-year-old, who runs Trev’s Curries [1], was preparing food orders at his home in Longton when a car veered into the hallway, while another ended up in a garden.

It later emerged that a Ford Mondeo and a Toyota Yaris were involved in a collision at the junction of Bridgewood Street and Goddard Street with the female driver of the Yaris taken to Royal Stoke University Hospital. The driver of the Ford, a 33-year-old man from Stoke-on-Trent, was arrested on suspicion of dangerous driving. He has since been released under investigation.

READ: Man, 33, arrested as car ‘hits house’ and another ends up in the garden [2] | Emergency services were called to the incident in Longton READ: Three hurt after car ‘crashes into Longton house’[3] | Police, paramedics and firefighters were called out to Goddard Street Trev believes it was sheer luck that no-one was hurt in the house as customers were in and out collecting orders ‘every five minutes’ that afternoon.

The last customer had left just four minutes before the smash, which happened at 5pm on December 23. Trev said: “There was an almighty bang. The house came unstuck like an earthquake or like a plane had come down.

I looked out the window and could just see lights and mess and heard screaming in the back of the car.

“I opened the door and was faced with a car sticking into my house. It didn’t seem real. I couldn’t grasp what had happened.

I had to shut the door before going out. “Everybody came out of the houses and the pub opposite. Fifty people were on the street straight away.”

Trev was with his partner Penny, her mum, dad, two teenage boys and the dog at the time. Despite the crash, Trev was able to fulfil all but ‘one or two’ Christmas orders that night. Trev said: “I was packing an order for a customer when it happened.

Thankfully nobody was in the hallway. We keep the dog in there sometimes but he was in the conservatory.

After the vehicle was removed

“We were so lucky because on that day we had a collection for our curries for Christmas. People were turning up every five minutes to our door.

It was so lucky nobody was at that door as it would have been horrific.” The family still enjoyed Christmas Day at home the ‘best they could’. Trev said: “We had Christmas here, just six of us.

We didn’t let it get to us. There’s not a lot we can do until the new year.” Trev has lived in the property for three years and said speeding is a big problem on Bridgewood Street and Goddard Street.

Trev added: “There’s numerous accidents on this street.

There’s been three this year. In the last 12 months I’ve noticed a massive increase in speeding cars. “For this car to end up in my home, through concrete, when it’s 30mph, something isn’t right.

As much as I hate them, speed ramps or some way of slowing traffic down would make it safer. “When you’re driving over the speed limit all it takes is one little lack of concentration. Drivers should think a bit more of the repercussions of going that speed in a built up area.”

Trevor Robinson’s garden before the crash

A spokesperson for West Midlands Ambulance Service said: “We were called to reports of a road traffic collision at the junction of Goddard Street and Anchor Terrance in Longton and sent two ambulances, a paramedic officer and the Midlands Air Ambulance Critical Care Car from Cosford to the scene.

“On arrival, crews discovered two cars had been involved in a collision and there were three patients requiring assessment. The female driver of the first car was treated for injuries not believed to be serious and taken to Royal Stoke University Hospital for further treatment. “The male driver and a female passenger from the second car were treated for minor injuries but did not require further treatment so were given self-care advice and discharged at the scene.”

The front door has been boarded up

A Staffordshire Police spokesman said: “We are appealing for information following a collision which resulted in a car colliding with a home in Stoke-on-Trent.

It happened on Bridgewood Street, Longton, just before 5pm on Saturday (December 23). A black Ford and a silver Toyota collided. “As a result, one of the cars collided with a home on the same street.

The other car went into the garden. Thankfully, no one inside the building was injured. A woman, the driver of the Yaris, was taken to hospital for precautionary checks.

A 33-year-old man, from Stoke-on-Trent and the driver of the Ford, was arrested on suspicion of dangerous driving. “He has since been released under investigation. If you have any information or dashcam footage that can help with our enquiries, call 101, quoting incident 531of 23 December, or message using Live Chat on our website.”

To report anonymously, call Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.

References

^ Trev’s Curries (www.facebook.com)
^ Man, 33, arrested as car ‘hits house’ and another ends up in the garden (www.stokesentinel.co.uk)
^ Three hurt after car ‘crashes into Longton house’ (www.stokesentinel.co.uk)
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