Volunteers from a Teesside baby hospice whose people carrier was involved in an alleged hit and run are hopeful of being able to fund the damage costs thanks to generous donations.
The eight-seater Citroen car belonging to Zoe’s Place, in Normanby, Middlesbrough, was parked up on Headlam Road in Darlington at about 7.30pm on December 30.
A member of staff was out collecting supplies when a white transit van collided with the car, pushing it sideways into a silver VW Polo.
Both vehicles were badly damaged in the smash and although it has not yet been confirmed, the car, which the charity relies on to transport terminally ill babies and children, is likely to be declared a write-off.
Moments after the crash, the van reversed into a blue Astra convertible car before fleeing the scene.
The voluntary organisation, which has earned a special place in Teesside hearts since 2004, put out an appeal on Facebook and help soon came pouring in.
More than £700 has been donated since the fundraising page was launched on Friday, and the post has been shared almost 3,000 times.
Chief executive Mark Guidery, said he was “overwhelmed” by the generosity shown by the public.
He said: “You hear of incidents like this and it just makes you feel low. The only good thing is that no one was hurt.
“I was not expecting the power of Facebook to take over the way it has, and to hear how much money has been raised in a short space of time is just remarkable. I’m quite overwhelmed.
Mr Guidery said the car, which was donated to the hospice in 2005 by workers at Teesside’s Corus after they raised more than £5,000 to fund it, has been “a superstar” to the charity.
He said: “It’s worked like a dream and we’ve never had problems with it. It’s a huge loss to the charity as it’s our main source of transport.”
The car has since been removed and the damaged will be assessed. The charity has been given a courtesy car from its insurers in the meantime.
Mr Guidery added: “It’s not looking good for us at the moment as a lot of the damage has occurred underneath. But we will wait to hear back from our insurance company.”
If you would like to make a donation: visit: http://ift.tt/1BxvPky
Durham Police were unavailable for comment today.
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