It was a moment in an otherwise ordinary day, but enough to change her life.
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Now Dawn Houghton wants her experience of the ongoing impact of road trauma to be the call for all drivers to think about others before taking risks on the roads.
Ms Houghton, now 74, had been travelling from her Dereel home to a doctor's appointment in Geelong in 2017 when she arrived at a roundabout.
"I had given way to a car on my right before looking left. I saw a white car a long way away in the distance," she said.
Believing it was all clear, she entered the roundabout and almost immediately felt a "bang".
Ms Houghton's car had been hit from behind, causing it to spin into the centre of the roundabout.
"I don't know what stopped me from rolling but it was really lucky I didn't roll," Ms Houghton recalled.
As smoke issued from her car and she stepped out of it, witnesses rushed to help her.
Ms Houghton alleges the other driver fled the scene and later faced police.
"I was hurt and in pain down my entire right side. I was having lots of trouble breathing and my knee had hit the dashboard and was injured."
I was hurt and in pain down my entire right side. I was having lots of trouble breathing and my knee had hit the dashboard and was injured
- Dawn Houghton
While in hindsight she acknowledges that she should have agreed to be transported in an ambulance, Ms Houghton said she was anxious and preoccupied with trying to call a tow truck and working out how she would get home.
She remembers spending about an hour on the side of the road, "a long way from home".
She described the incident as extremely "stressful and traumatic" but she was most grateful for the help of a woman who remained by her side the entire time and called her husband to pick her up and take her to the doctor.
Ms Houghton's car was a write-off and needed to be towed from the scene.
The crash had a major impact on her life and she told The Courier she was still traumatised by it.
"The injury had a major impact on me. It slowed me down and it got to the point where I couldn't walk properly. I was dragging my leg and was in a lot of pain," she said.
While she had experienced issues with her knee prior to the crash, she said it exacerbated the issues and resulted in her needing to use a walking stick until she had a knee replacement.
An independent woman and experienced driver who would drive herself everywhere before the incident, it took months for her to rebuild her confidence behind the wheel.
"I got my licence at 18 and have been driving all this time without a worry.
"But this has had a marked effect on me, still all these years later."
While she continues to drive today, she becomes anxious when other drivers travel behind her and does not like travelling through roundabouts.
Given her experience, her message to other drivers is this:
"Don't drive dangerously and don't tailgate. Always leave space between you and the car in front of you," she said, adding this was important as there were many hazards on country roads, such as wildlife.
"All it takes is for something to happen to that car in front and you will go straight into them because you don't have room to stop."
She urged people not to speed, especially when approaching intersections, not to drive when impaired and to always be vigilant.
You don't just drive for yourself but for every other person on the road
- Dawn Houghton
"You need to be on the ball all the time. You have to be looking ahead and be aware of what every other bugger is doing because some people think they're invincible.
"You don't just drive for yourself but for every other person on the road - not just to be considerate but for your own safety.
"It's common sense really. Everyone needs to drive to the conditions they're in."
Slater and Gordon Geelong Motor Vehicle Accident Lawyer, Sarah Elseidy, is representing Ms Houghton with a legal claim.
She said speeding, alcohol and drugs were common causes of road trauma and too often resulted in devastating injuries.
"Dangerous behaviours such as consuming alcohol or drugs, and reckless driving on the roads can injure others and end lives. Road trauma can have a psychological impact on those hurt or killed and their family members, as well as witnesses and first responders," she said.
If you are involved in a crash, immediately phone 000.