‘This is it’: Albanese admits fearing death before nasty crash
Labor leader Anthony Albanese thought he would die moments before a Range Rover travelling on the wrong side of the road ploughed into his car.
Opposition leader Anthony Albanese admits thinking “this is it” a split second before a nasty crash that totalled his car.
The Labor leader is recovering at home in Sydney after being fortunate to survive a serious crash in the inner-west suburb of Marrickville.
Mr Albanese was travelling on Hill Street on Friday evening when a Range Rover travelling in the wrong lane ploughed into his vehicle.
“All of a sudden, he was right in front of me and headed straight for me. I had a little millisecond to react,” Mr Albanese told ABC radio.
“I will never forget the feeling that you know ‘this is it’. That is what I thought.
“All I knew was there was a very, very, very big vehicle headed straight for me and there was nowhere for me to go on a street like that.
“It was all a little bit of a blur for me afterwards, but people are saying they heard the sound of the whack two blocks away. Certainly from looking at my car, that’s the case.
“I was just very lucky I had a guardian angel up there looking after me.”
Mr Albanese was taken to Sydney’s Royal Prince Alfred Hospital (RPA) for 24 hours before being discharged.
He suffered external and internal swelling, but said he would make a full recovery after “terrific” treatment by paramedics and RPA staff.
Mr Albanese confirmed a 17-year old driver had been charged with negligent driving over the crash.
The Labor leader said he hoped the incident would be a good lesson for the teenager, who was uninjured.
The crash has postponed his plans to travel to Canberra ahead of the first sitting week of the year.
Mr Albanese had hoped to travel on Sunday, giving him enough time to undergo 14 days quarantine before attending Australia Day events in the nation’s capital.
But he said he would “certainly” be in parliament for the first sitting day on February 2.
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