Waikato police are applauding a member of the public who dobbed in a woman driver who was so drunk she passed out at the police station.
The 52-year-old Hamilton woman was three times the legal adult alcohol limit after she was spotted driving over the Kaimai Ranges where she overtook other vehicles on no-passing lines and was weaving from one side of the road to the other.
Police, who stopped her after another motorist called *555, said she was appallingly drunk and had one of the highest readings in the western Bay of Plenty for some time.
Senior Sergeant Ian Campion from Tauranga police said the person who reported her probably saved another innocent motorist's life or serious injury.
"We simply cannot afford for drink-drivers to keep killing people," he said.
"It defies logic. Here is a person who has not just had a few drinks and has driven and is slightly over the limit. Here is a person who is grossly intoxicated."
The woman was stopped at 2.16pm yesterday after the call from the public and after she overtook a police car.
She had a breath-alcohol reading of more than 1100 micrograms of alcohol per litre of breath - nearly three times the legal adult limit.
He said the woman was heading home to Hamilton after visiting Tauranga.
