Shocking video footage has revealed the terrifying moment a drunk driver, more than three times the legal alcohol limit, crashed his van into a family home in Gloucester, coming within seconds of striking three young people.
A Terrifying Sequence of Destruction
The incident occurred at approximately 8.05pm on August 9 on Tuffley Lane in the city. CCTV from the semi-detached property captured builder Mike Turner, 53, losing control of his Vauxhall Vivaro van. The vehicle clipped the edge of a roundabout, mounted a grass verge, ploughed through a fence, struck a parked car, and finally smashed into the side of the house.
Inside, a husband and wife were watching television in their lounge. "We heard two really loud bangs and we both dived off the sofa," the woman, who wished to remain anonymous, recounted. "I said, 'What's that?'" The couple were unharmed but had no idea of the scale of the incident until they went outside to find the van embedded in their property.
Narrow Escape for Family and Pedestrians
The family's adult son was in his bedroom at the time. His Ford Escort, parked on the driveway, was written off in the collision. Most alarmingly, the CCTV showed three children walking directly past the house moments before the van careered through the fence and into the exact spot they had been. The youngsters had already called the police by the time the homeowners emerged.
"I can moan about the house and car being damaged but that's all repairable and replaceable," the homeowner stated. "If those young people walking past our house had been badly hurt, we would never have got over that. When I saw the video, I was really shocked to see how they could easily have been injured."
The damage to the house was so severe that scaffolding was required to prevent the porch and wall from collapsing. The family now faces an expected 13-week repair job, with costs likely running into thousands of pounds, to be covered by Turner's insurance.
Court Hearing and Sentence
At Cheltenham Magistrates' Court, it was heard that police found Turner slumped over the wheel after the crash. He initially suggested he had suffered a seizure, but hospital assessment found him fit. A police breath test revealed he had 113 micrograms of alcohol per 100 millilitres of breath; the legal limit is 35.
Turner, of Gloucester Road, Hartpury, pleaded guilty to drink-driving. Defending himself, he said he had been drinking too much following the breakdown of his marriage and was struggling with his mental health, but was receiving support.
With no previous convictions, magistrates sentenced him to an 18-month community order with an alcohol treatment requirement. He was banned from driving for 26 months and fined £259. He was offered the chance to reduce his ban by six weeks if he completes a drink-drive rehabilitation course.
The family involved hope that by sharing the dramatic video of the near-miss, they can deter others from the potentially catastrophic decision to drink and drive.
