A Google Street View car hits three vehicles in Bogor, Indonesia, as the driver panics and attempts to flee.
Google finds itself in hot waters with its Street View service, yet again. A Google Street View car driver in Bogor, Indonesia, hit two public transport vehicles and a truck. Google has confirmed the news and is "working closely" with the authorities in wake of the incident.
The news circulated online, after an eyewitness posted pictures of the accident on an Indonesian website, which involved one of several Subaru Impreza vehicles used in the Google Street View project. Narrating the incident, police said that the car first hit a bus and then the driver panicked and hit another bus then a truck attempting to flee.
There have been no reports of any injuries to the on-board travelers of all the vehicles involved in the accident.
"We take incidents like this very seriously. We're working closely with local authorities to address the situation," Vishnu Mahmud, head of communications for Google in Indonesia, told news agency AFP, reports BBC.
Based on the images shown on an Indonesian forum, the car supposedly suffered worst impact on the front side with the windscreen completely cracked. This isn't the first time a Google Street View car has been blamed for a road accident. Earlier this year, one of the Street View cars was said to have killed a donkey in Botswana, Africa. But later, Google investigated the incident and released a statement to defend its act saying the donkey was not run over and dead.
"As our imagery below shows, the donkey was lying in the path - perhaps enjoying a dust bath - before moving safely aside as our car drove past. I'm pleased to confirm the donkey is alive and well," Kei Kawai, Group Product Manager, Google Maps wrote in a blog post, January.
A major setback to the project was when Google was criticized by several governments for collecting personal data through its Street View service between 2008 and 2010. That resulted in the company having to shell out huge fines and since then has been under close scrutiny of several governments.
