Phone-staring warning after Wellingborough \'hit-and-run\'

Phone-staring warning after Wellingborough 'hit-and-run'

Olivia Keane Image copyright Olivia Keane
Image caption Olivia Keane suffered cuts to her face and severe bruising to her pelvis and ribs in the suspected hit-and-run

A woman has warned of the dangers of looking at phones while crossing roads after being involved in a suspected hit-and run.

Olivia Keane, 20, was walking across Butts Road in Wellingborough, Northamptonshire, on New Year's Eve when she was knocked unconscious.

Police believe she was hit by an unknown vehicle that failed to stop.

Miss Keane cannot remember the details of the incident but believes she was "looking down at my phone" at the time.

The personal trainer said: "If I was on my phone and crossing the road I know I'm partly to blame, and also you never know what idiots are going to be driving around.

"[Looking at your phone] is not worth it in the slightest. Just wait until you get home or wait until you've crossed the road, at least. I've definitely learned the hard way."

Image copyright Olivia Keane
Image caption Olivia Keane has had to take time off work after being injured
Image copyright Google Maps
Image caption Olivia Keane was walking on Butts Road at the time

Miss Keane had been walking home from her girlfriend's house to pick up clothes for a trip to Brighton, where the pair planned to spend New Year.

She said when she was crossing Butts Road at some point between 12:30 and 13:20 GMT she "felt a really sharp blow to my side and I remember feeling the pain and shock of it".

"The next thing I remember I was lying on the floor and having a banging headache," she continued.

Miss Keane returned to her girlfriend Amy Gray's house and was then taken by ambulance to hospital, where she was told she was "lucky" not to have broken any bones.

Image copyright Olivia Keane
Image caption Olivia Keane had been preparing to travel to Brighton with her girlfriend Amy Gray for the New Year

She had suffered severe pelvic and rib bruising while also receiving cuts to her face and has had to take time off work during her "busiest time of year".

Miss Keane said the driver who fled the scene "needs to have a bit of a wake-up call".

"If it was a young kid or elderly person they would have been much worse than I was," she added.

A police spokeswoman said: "It is believed the woman was knocked unconscious after being in collision with a vehicle that failed to stop, and she may have been at the roadside for several minutes before regaining consciousness."