Passenger Car Crashes Into Playground Wall... 70-Year-Old Driver Claims Sudden Acceleration

Police "Analyzing the exact cause of the accident"

In an apartment complex in Busan, a car driven by a man in his 70s suddenly rushed into a playground, causing a frightening accident. The driver claimed that the vehicle experienced sudden unintended acceleration.

According to the Sasang Police Station in Busan on the 9th, at around 9:13 a.m., a car driven by a man in his 70s, Mr. A, rushed toward the playground in an apartment complex located in Eomgung-dong, Sasang-gu, Busan. The car broke through a wall and entered the playground before coming to a stop. Mr. A, who had visited the apartment complex as a guest, reportedly drove straight for about 50 meters after entering the complex and then crashed into the playground wall.

A passenger car rushed into the apartment complex playground. [Image provided by Busan Sasang Police Station]

As a result of the accident, Mr. A and a female passenger in her 70s, Ms. B, were injured and transported to the hospital. Fortunately, there were no children in the playground at the time, preventing a major accident.

Immediately after the accident, Mr. A claimed to the police that the brakes did not work and the vehicle suddenly accelerated. Sudden unintended acceleration refers to a phenomenon where the vehicle accelerates rapidly without the driver's intention.

The black box reportedly recorded Mr. A’s panicked voice just before the accident. However, the police consider the possibility of sudden unintended acceleration to be low. Upon reviewing CCTV footage and the black box, the vehicle was traveling at a relatively slow speed of about 30 km/h, and there was no sudden acceleration just before the accident. Typically, vehicles exhibit loud noises and rapid acceleration before sudden unintended acceleration occurs.

A police official stated, "The brake lights did not come on until the vehicle crashed into the wall and stopped, at which point the brake lights were activated," adding, "We are analyzing the vehicle’s EDR (Event Data Recorder) to determine the exact cause of the accident."