February 28th, 2024Not so bright spark

Ballarat Highway Patrol have charged a man after he was caught driving his vehicle on its rims which in turn sparked spot fires along the side of the road in Buangor on Sunday.

The driver first came to police attention following calls to Triple Zero (000) that a car was travelling eastbound on the Western Highway on its rims about 6.15pm, Sunday February 25.

The vehicle, with the passenger side rear wheel rim exposed, was also spotted by police working traffic management points in the area due to the bushfires current in the area at the time.

Witnesses reported seeing the wheel rim spark with the road which allegedly led to four separate small fires in grass along the roadway, which were extinguished by fire authorities.

The driver of the green Mitsubishi Magna sedan continued driving erratically into Beaufort, at times reportedly on the wrong side of the road, before a near-miss with a pedestrian.

The car came to a stop in parkland when the driver tried to drive through the area, in the vicinity of Willoby and Beggs street.

The man ran from the dumped car and was pursued by members of the public who caught up to him and held him until police arrived on scene shortly after.

The 27-year-old Sebastopol man was arrested at the scene and has been charged with:

• reckless conduct endangering serious injury (x2)

• drive whilst disqualified

• careless driving

• use unroadworthy motor vehicle

• use unregistered motor vehicle

He was bailed to appear before Ballarat Magistrates’ Court on 18 March 2024.