A taxi driver and her two passengers narrowly escaped injury after an overhead cable crashed into their vehicle, smashing the windscreen and sending shards of glass everywhere.

And disgruntled taxi driver Khalida Muhammad is demanding compensation for herself and her passengers after claiming the Bermuda Telephone Company (BTC) failed to take responsibility for the incident.

Ms Muhammad told The Royal Gazette that she picked up a visiting couple from the Pompano Beach Club on Thursday morning. But as she neared the airport on Wilkinson Avenue, near the corner of Tom Moore's Tavern, she had to slow down because of a traffic build up.

After stopping her Peugeot station wagon taxi, she got out to see what was going on and was informed that BTC was fixing one of its poles.

She said: "After about three quarters of an hour, someone began to wave the traffic going East through.

"My car went around the corner and all of a sudden, the lady who was looking back, screamed, `Oh my God!' "A huge thick cable came swinging onto the back windshield of my taxi."

She said that there was glass everywhere, on the visitors and on their luggage.

"They were in a major panic. They had to get out of the car and we beat it off them. I was shaken up also," she said.

A man in a private car who witnessed the accident offered to take the visitors to the airport.

"If it wasn't for that man, they would have missed their flight. I would also like to tell him thank-you," Ms Muhammad said.

But her major complaint is how she was treated by the BTC supervisor at the scene.

"When the Police arrived, an officer did the accident report and gave a copy to me and to the guy from BTC," she said.

She said that when she asked the man what was going to happen to her taxi, he simply replied:"There's no-one at the telephone yard to get plastic for your car so you're probably going to have to go `round Gorhams to buy some to tape the window. I'll have to talk to my manager."

"Even remembering the incident makes me angry," she said. "It's terrible the visitors had to end their vacation like that. As far as I'm concerned, he was rude and callous. He never apologised for anything or even said he'll see what he can do to help.

"The people were so frightened, they were scared out of their wits. I'm just so angry, BTC's attitude sucked.

"I want them to give the guests a formal apology and I want compensation for what I lost and for the windshield," she said. "It seemed like he (the BTC engineer) was trying to get out of it."

She said after the confrontation with the BTC supervisor she drove the taxi to Blue Hole Hill gas station where "kind workers" gave her a brush and a box to clear the glass from her hatchback and back seat.

"I had to take everything out, knock the rest of the glass out, and brush it out. Then I had to vacuum." She said that while she was cleaning, she heard all of the jobs she could have been going to, but due to the mess, she had to stay and clean because she did not own the vehicle.

After she finished cleaning, she drove the taxi to Godet and Young where the window was patched with plastic and duct tape.

Then on Friday morning Ms Muhammad said she went to a dealer to get a new windshield, but was told that they had none in and she would have to wait at least two weeks.

Yesterday BTC claimed it knew nothing of the accident and that Ms Muhammad "should have had the decency to call the manager herself and file her complaint" .

"Its not like we are refusing her claim," said a company representative.

"She has a legal document from the Police and will have to call the manager to see what is her best bet."

BTC says it expects the service to Harrington Sound Road to be restored this week.

Service was lost after a gondola truck, travelling along the road struck the overhead cables east of Tom Moore's Tavern, resulting in the pulling of both BTC and Cablevision lines.

Shortly after a second vehicle severed the lines causing a disturbance for about 325 company customers.

Technicians responded and a number of underground cables will have to be installed to replace the overhead lines. Splicing of the cable had begun and would continue over the weekend.

Customers are asked to call 611 for further updates.