九一星空无限

ZB ZB
Opinion
Live now
Start time
Playing for
End time
Listen live
Up next
ZB

'Stupid and immature': Hoons' burnouts at intersection contributed to tourist's death

Author
Ric Stevens,
Publish Date
Tue, 5 Aug 2025, 7:13am

'Stupid and immature': Hoons' burnouts at intersection contributed to tourist's death

Author
Ric Stevens,
Publish Date
Tue, 5 Aug 2025, 7:13am

A friend of a Canadian woman who died after a crash at a vandalised intersection has got a message for the people who damaged road signs and obliterated road markings by doing burnouts. 

鈥淭he consequences of their stupidity and their immaturity are going to live on forever,鈥 says Margareta Dovgal, who was a passenger in the car Helen Poon was driving when they crashed on December 30, 2023. 

鈥淚 want the people who did what they did 鈥 to understand the consequences of messing with critical safety infrastructure. 

鈥淎nyone who thinks that, you know, pulling out traffic signs is a responsible thing to do, [should] understand that, no, it鈥檚 a matter of life or death.鈥 

Poon and Dovgal were on a driving holiday in New Zealand in a borrowed Audi coupe when they approached the intersection of State Highway 50 and Maraekakaho Rd near Hastings. 

Poon drove through the intersection without stopping and collided with a Toyota Landcruiser. 

The 34-year-old local government politician from Port Albani in British Columbia died in Wellington Hospital five days later from the complications of blunt force trauma. 

The intersection of Maraekakaho Rd and State Highway 50 near Hastings. This photo was taken on December 30, 2023, the day of the collision which claimed the life of Canadian tourist Helen Poon. Photo / Coroners CourtThe intersection of Maraekakaho Rd and State Highway 50 near Hastings. This photo was taken on December 30, 2023, the day of the collision which claimed the life of Canadian tourist Helen Poon. Photo / Coroners Court 

A findings report from Coroner Mark Wilton released today included photographs of damage caused to the intersection by 鈥渁nti-social driving behaviour鈥. 

A photograph taken on the day of the crash showed that road markings at the intersection were not visible. 

A give way sign was missing and the other had been turned around to face the other way. 

Chevron boards on a post opposite the T-junction had been removed. 

Coroner Wilton said the damage to the intersection was a contributing factor to the collision. 

鈥淭here was no clear indication, by way of signage or road markings from Ms Poon鈥檚 point of view, that she was required to give way,鈥 he said in his findings. 

The intersection of Maraekakaho Rd and State Highway 50 near Hastings, as it should look. Photo / Coroners CourtThe intersection of Maraekakaho Rd and State Highway 50 near Hastings, as it should look. Photo / Coroners Court 

Another photograph, taken after the intersection had been refurbished, provided what he called a 鈥渟tark difference鈥. 

It makes obvious the requirement to give way at that location. 

Coroner Wilton said Poon鈥檚 death highlighted the consequences anti-social driving and burnouts can have. 

鈥淭he damage caused to the road and the environment endangers the safety and lives of all New Zealand road users,鈥 he said. 

鈥淚 encourage those drivers to disengage from such driving behaviour and follow the road rules.鈥 

The coroner said that people had continued to damage the intersection even after the collision. 

He recommended that the New Zealand Transport Agency consider how to further deter anti-social driving, and arrange regular checks of the intersection to ensure the road markings remained visible. 

Dovgal told 九一星空无限 from her home in Canada that Poon was an example of how to be a responsible car enthusiast. 

The coroner鈥檚 report said Poon had been driving since she was 16, had a collection of 15 vehicles and held the Canadian equivalent of a heavy truck licence. 

鈥淪he was a responsible motorist. She was a car collector,鈥 Dovgal said. 

Canadian friends Helen Poon (left) and Margareta Dovgal were travelling New Zealand together when they were involved in a collision. Poon died five days later in hospital. Dovgal says she has only recently been able to ride in a car without panic attacks.  Photo / Margareta DovgalCanadian friends Helen Poon (left) and Margareta Dovgal were travelling New Zealand together when they were involved in a collision. Poon died five days later in hospital. Dovgal says she has only recently been able to ride in a car without panic attacks. Photo / Margareta Dovgal 

鈥淪he loved the experience of driving, the culture and the community around it, and she was an example of knowing how to be passionate about that hobby in a very responsible, very safe way,鈥 she said. 

鈥淎 beautiful woman lost her life, and she鈥檚 missed, and she was really, really loved by many people, and she would have gone on to do wonderful things.鈥 

Dovgal was injured in the collision and said she had experienced flashbacks and post-traumatic stress since. 

鈥淚t鈥檚 only recently that I鈥檝e stopped having panic attacks when I鈥檓 in a car,鈥 she said. 

Ric Stevens spent many years working for the former New Zealand Press Association news agency, including as a political reporter at Parliament, before holding senior positions at various daily newspapers. He joined 九一星空无限鈥檚 Open Justice team in 2022 and is based in Hawke鈥檚 Bay. His writing in the crime and justice sphere is informed by four years of front-line experience as a probation officer. 

Take your Radio, Podcasts and Music with you