S'porean woman, 31, 6 months pregnant with 1st child, sent flying in Yishun car crash: 'I'm thankful to be alive'

A 31-year-old woman was driving along her usual route to work when a silver car came speeding towards her — apparently out of nowhere.

It hit her car from the side.

The impact from getting clipped sent her and the car flying across the road.

Driver and vehicle ended up upside down on the road.

Discharged from hospital

A week after the Nov. 27 incident at Yishun Avenue 2 at around 8:50am, the female driver, who wanted to be known only by her surname Lee, spoke to Mothership following her discharge from the hospital.

"I'm thankful to be alive," said the Singaporean, who is six months pregnant with her first child.

While she did not suffer from any major injuries, she is in the midst of undergoing tests for her unborn baby.

She said:

"I just hope that the baby and myself will be okay."

The collision

Dashcam footage shared by a Mothership reader showed the car being struck on the side by another car, which apparently did not have the right of way.

"I'm just going straight, with the green light, travelling at normal speed. Then the other car just dashed across the red light," Lee recalled.

"At a very fast speed, so I didn't have time to react... [then] oh my God, the car just overturned."

Despite the suddenness of the impact, Lee's instinctive reaction was to "shield [her] tummy" because she was pregnant.

"I still remember the windscreen just shattered in front of me... I was just hoping the baby would be okay," she said.

While she had her seatbelt on, she "slid out of [her] seat to a certain extent" when the car overturned, and hit her head on the roof.

Terrified that the car would explode, she tried to unbuckle the seatbelt and exit the vehicle, but was unable to due to her upside-down position.

Fortunately, a passer-by came across the scene and helped her out of the vehicle.

Several other motorists also stopped to help redirect traffic.

An ambulance was called, and Lee was subsequently sent to the hospital.

Undergoing tests

Over the next few days, Lee underwent a series of tests to check on the health of her baby.

She also received treatment for her own injuries, which comprised mostly of bruises and a chronic headache due to her having hit her head.

She was discharged on Dec. 1, but still has to go for more tests to monitor her and the baby's condition.

Asked if she is in contact with the other driver, she said that she currently does not know anything about him.

"I did not manage to speak to the other driver, I don't even have his particulars or anything," she said.

She added that she has lodged a police report, as well as engaged a lawyer.

She intends to claim for damages for her vehicle — which is likely to be declared a total loss — and her own hospitalisation bills.

In the interim, Lee does not intend to drive anymore as she still feels "traumatised" whenever she sits in a car.

Her husband, 35, is similarly worried about her, and feared for her life when he heard about the accident.

She said:

"He even thought that he might have to make a difficult decision, and choose between mother and baby. It's a very real situation... he was definitely very worried."

Most importantly, though, she hopes to raise awareness of traffic safety.

"I hope nobody will need to go through the traumatic experience that I've gone through," she said.

"Never would I have thought that it could have been my last time travelling to work, and the last goodbye I would say to my husband when leaving the house."

"It could have been a potential loss of two lives, because of one reckless driver."

Police investigations are ongoing.

Top image from Mothership reader