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David Unwin / Things
The thick concrete barriers blocking the Manawatū Gorge Highway were severely damaged in July when Carl Raymond Trower crashed into them while high on cannabis and methamphetamine.
A man who seriously injured his friend after colliding with the concrete barriers blocking the Manawatū Gorge road, is preaching sobriety after the incident.
He is also getting cold in custody after repeatedly failing to show up to court.
Carl Raymond Trower, 24, pleaded guilty in Nelson District Court to dangerous driving, injured Milton Reriti and violated bail.
The accident took place on July 17 at the Ashhurst end of the Manawatū Gorge Highway, which has been closed since April 2017 due to landslides.
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Large concrete barriers have been placed along the road to stop traffic, while speed bumps and signs are also in place.
Trower was driving a Mercedes when, at 6.30 a.m., he passed the signs that said the road was closed.
It accelerated above 100 km / h before hitting the concrete barrier.
The force of the collision broke the concrete and tipped the vehicle over the barriers, trapping Trower and Reriti inside.
It took the jaws of life to pull them out before they were taken to the hospital.
David Unwin / Stuff
The black markings on the road show where the Mercedes Trower was driving landed after overturning the barrier.
Trower had methamphetamine and THC, the main psychoactive compound in cannabis, in his system.
Reriti had to be airlifted to Wellington Hospital, then Christchurch to receive treatment for a traumatic brain injury.
He was in a coma for weeks, needed to remove part of his skull, and suffered a fractured vertebra, requiring a tilting wheelchair to get around.
Now she faces a life-long rehab and may never be fully independent again.
Trower, who spoke to Things after the accident, but before being charged, he said he and Reriti spent the night drinking at a friend’s home in Palmerston North.
David Unwin / Stuff
Trower passed the “road closed” signs before crashing into the barriers blocking the road.
He claimed he only drank three cups of homebrew and left the friend’s house after an argument.
He didn’t see the dead end signs and only saw the barrier when the road curved, he said.
But he did recall seeing Reriti dangling from his seat belt after the accident while the car was on the driver’s side.
“I tried to wake him up, but couldn’t.”
He also recalled cursing the paramedics, begging them to help Reriti.
David Unwin / Things
The concrete barriers that stopped cars entering the Manawatū Gorge were pushed back by the force of the impact.
He was riddled with guilt for what he did to Reriti.
“When I was in a coma, I was just playing games in my mind, what if it doesn’t come out?”
Now he encouraged sober driving, saying he didn’t want his friends to make the same mistake.
“I’d rather walk someone home now.
“Even if it takes a couple of hours, as long as they get home safely.”
Being sober won’t be difficult for Trower, as he was in custody until his sentencing in Nelson in February.
He requested bail, but Judge Jo Rielly rejected it.
Although the details of the bail hearings cannot be reported, Trower has not appeared in court at least twice since the accident.
