Trip to Ballarat ice cream shop turns into hospital dash for three girls

Three girls are expected to make a full recovery after they were picked up onto the bonnet of a runaway car outside a popular Ballarat ice creamery in the CBD on Friday afternoon.

The accident was reported at 5.06pm outside of Cold Rock, at the Sturt Street and Grenville Street intersection, where the girls - aged 11 to 13 - had just bought ice cream.

Ballarat Highway Patrol officers said the area was busy at the time, and they were appealing for witnesses or anyone with footage to come forward.

"The girls are known to each other and were standing on the footpath when this happened," Senior Constable Aaron Birrell said.

"A parent who is not related to the girls helped them out and people came from Bridge Mall to help render assistance.

"The girls have minor injuries.

"It appears a four-wheel-drive with a young female driver may have rear-ended a silver sedan with a driver in his mid-60s.

"The sedan has then mounted the footpath, smashing outdoor furniture and knocking over a council bin."

The car came to a rest after slamming into a bollard at the corner of Sturt and Grenville streets.

Senior Constable Birrell described the impact as medium-to-low.

No one has been charged over the incident and police said investigations were pending.

Police said many of the witnesses were children and families and had described the incident as extremely confronting.

Staff at Cold Rock said they wished all involved in the incident a full and speedy recovery.

They also said they wanted to hear from the families of the girls if possible.

Officers said help for people who had witnessed or being affected by road trauma was available via the Amber Community hotline on 1300 367 797 or go to ambercommunity.org.au

Anyone with information or CCTV footage is urged to contact Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000 or online at crimestoppersvic.com.au

FRIDAY:

Three secondary school aged girls have escaped serious injury, after they were reportedly hit by a car following a collision at a busy Ballarat intersection on Friday afternoon.

The incident happened at the corner of Sturt Street and Grenville Streets just after 5pm.

The Courier understands one vehicle was rear-ended before colliding with the pedestrians.

The front end of one of the vehicles was crushed around a bollard.

An Ambulance Victoria spokesperson confirmed the patients mainly suffered cuts and abrasions in the incident. They were taken to the Ballarat Base Hospital in a stable condition.

The incident also resulted in a bin and some outside dining chairs being destroyed and the intersection remains blocked while emergency crews clear the scene.

Have you tried The Courier's app? It can be downloaded here.