A Cape Breton woman is seeking answers after she was allegedly involved in a hit-and-run collision in Sydney, N.S. on Sunday. Shaken and sore, she is speaking out in hopes someone will come forward and provide police with additional information.
April Cluett, 29, is still in shock following the incident, which she says occurred when she was driving home from work.
“He had pulled out to left side of me and taken his truck and jacked the wheel to the right and slammed me off the road,” says Cluett. “He completely ran me right off the road.”
The collision left Cluett's vehicle severely damaged on the driver’s side, which she estimates will cost thousands of dollars to repair. However, her main concern is why someone would leave the scene of a crash.
“It's possible he was trying to get somewhere in a hurry and didn't like the speed I was going,” says Cluett. “I don't think it justified wrecking my car and putting my life in danger.”
According to Cluett, plenty of witnesses were in the area when the alleged hit-and-run occurred and have given statements to police – witnesses she thanks for helping her during a terrifying situation.
“At that point, I was really in a lot of pain and quite shaken up. I think a bit of anxiety and panic kind of set in,” says Cluett. “I was doing a lot of screaming, a lot of shrieking – lucky two individuals came forward to help me calm down.”
Cluett was taken to hospital by ambulance. Fortunately, she didn’t any suffer broken bones; however, she did experience whiplash and has been prescribed pain medication.
Despite her collision, her work does require her to drive – something she’s apprehensive about doing at the time.
“I have to leave today to try and get back to work and sustain an income. I'm not looking forward to getting behind the wheel at all today,” says Cluett. “It's extremely unfortunate being a small business owner and having to rely on the vehicle to pay for the bills.”
Cluett says the vehicle that allegedly hit her is a silver or light grey Dodge Ram that would have damage on its passenger side. She notes she has contacted police, who are investigating.
Meanwhile, Cluett hopes speaking out will inspire someone to come forward with additional information.
With files from CTV Atlantic’s Kyle Moore