Car crash into living room sparks calls for action at blackspot

Julie Wren said she was "shocked and stunned" upon witnessing the crash at her house off the B1062 Bungay Road in Barsham, near Beccles, where she has lived for 25 years.

It was the third accident on New Year's Eve on the same stretch of road, which has become a notorious accident blackspot due to flooding. 

Mrs Wren said: “It was about 10.30 pm and I was just watching a bit of rubbish on TV when suddenly there was a loud bang, and my TV flew across the room. 

“Then bricks fell down which blocked the door, which blocked me into the living room. I froze in shock and was stunned, speechless for a moment. 

“I was trapped so the fire service had to smash their way into my house to rescue me.”

The car crashed into Mrs Wren's living room while she was watching television (Image: Michelle Savage) 

The roads authority, Suffolk Highways, said it had made efforts to warn motorists of the dangers, and said it would aim to prevent further accidents there. 

But Mrs Wren said she and her neighbours hoped the Suffolk County Council department would now clear a drain to cut the risk of the road flooding again.

She said five cars had crashed into her garden since March, and believed flooding on the road was responsible for each incident.

Mrs Wren said: “I am too shocked to be angry at the moment. It feels like we have woken up from a bad dream, but this is reality.   

“My house is smashed and unsafe to live in, a driver nearly died and is badly injured, and the whole community here is in shock. 

“I wish Suffolk Highways would act because this is getting beyond ridiculous now, everyone is so worried." 

Rose and Alfie Ellis (left) with Julie Wren in pink and Michelle Savage (right) outside of Mrs Wren's boarded up home (Image: Bruno Brown)

Michelle Savage, who lives behind Mrs Wren's house, said: “We want people to be aware of how dangerous the frequent flooding on the road here is.   

“Visibility at night is so poor and people see the flood at the last minute, by which point it is too late and they have lost control in the water.   

“The money spent on the fire crew, police, ambulance and air ambulance having to rush out here on three occasions must have been extraordinary.     

“Surely that money could have been spent on properly sorting out the issue of the flooding. None of us has slept, or eaten, we are all so scared and anxious. We are dreading the next rainfall.” 

Mrs Wren stayed with another neighbour, Rose Ellis, following the crash. 

Ms Ellis said: “We have been on to Suffolk Highways all year about the issue.

"It is so upsetting because nothing gets sorted, it is like nobody is listening or taking this seriously.  

“When the fire service dragged Julie out, I couldn’t I had to put her up for the night because her house wasn't safe.

"If Suffolk Highways closed the road this mess would've been prevented."

Mrs Wren's home is now boarded up and she has been moved into a hotel (Image: Submitted)

A spokesperson from Suffolk Highways said it would "continue to monitor the location”.

The spokesperson said: “Following heavy rain and subsequent flooding, we were asked by police to place flood warning boards in this location to warn road users to drive carefully.  

“After a few hours of placing these boards out, we reassessed the area and found the flooding had reduced. 

“However, at around midnight, we received a further call from the police to advise of a road traffic collision and request a road closure.  

“The closure was removed after the water cleared and both the police and Highways agreed that the road was safe to reopen.” 

The condition of the road at 8am on New Year's day following the rescue efforts (Image: Michelle Savage)

The neighbours said they were also concerned about damage to the adjacent footpath after a pedestrian was killed at the same spot in February. 

Stuart Lamb, who lives nearby, said: “After the clear up, the roadside verge has been left looking like the aftermath of the Somme.  

“It is supposed to be a public footpath. Do Suffolk Highways want there to be another fatal accident with a pedestrian after a pedestrian was killed a couple of months ago?”

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The flooding at the site which caused three crashes on New Year's Eve (taken in November 2022) (Image: Bruno Brown)