By Lauren Crimp, of RNZ
Monday 12:24pm

A gun-wielding man jumped into a Palmerston North hospital worker's car and threaten her with a gun as she left work late at night.

It is understood the woman is a nurse.

Police said they were called about 11pm on Friday after a man got into the
back seat of the woman's car and pointed a gun at her, telling her to drive.

"The woman drove a short distance before getting out of the car and asking
for help at a nearby house. The man fled on foot," they said.

"Fortunately, no one was injured, but this would have been a terrifying experience for the woman."

Police were investigating, including making forensic inquiries, to locate the man.

Health NZ said it had boosted security at the hospital.

"This has been a traumatic experience for our staff member, and we are
wrapping all the care and support around them that we can," said MidCentral Health's group operations director Sarah Fenwick.

"We have put additional security measures in place and will continue to speak with our teams about what more we can do."

An internal notice to hospital staff said security would be available to walk staff to their cars if they needed it, and all afternoon and night shift workers would have access to the staff car park.

The notice encouraged people to "walk with a buddy" before and after their shifts if possible, lock their cars, and keep valuables out of their cars.

rnz.co.nz

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