What happened when bikie hell broke loose in Mackay

AUGUST 31, 1997, started just like any other day for paramedic Stephen Eggleston. In fact, it was a “quiet one” for a Sunday, before all hell broke loose.

AUGUST 31, 1997, started just like any other day for paramedic Stephen Eggleston.

In fact, it was a "quiet one" for a Sunday, before all hell broke loose.

Mr Eggleston, now a Sarina paramedic, said trouble had been brewing between rival bikie clubs Odin's Warriors and the Outlaws for weeks but no-one expected a horrific shoot-out that shocked the city's police and frightened its residents.

He said after arriving on scene only moments after shooting had stopped he saw club members hiding behind nearby bushes and cars and a wounded bikie on Barnes Creek Rd, just north of the Forgan Bridge.

"I remember it was a hot day… a quiet one for a Sunday," Mr Eggleston said.

"Then the job came in.

"We went down and one of the bikies came up to us and said they had no problem with an ambulance coming through so we drove to the end of the bridge.

"I got out with a police officer and walked to the first guy who had a head wound."

Mr Eggleston said another club member appeared from around a nearby corner and called out that there were other wounded bikies in houses down the street.

"When we got the call…. they just said there was a shooting at the Roundhouse," he said. 

"The Roundhouse did have some bikie involvement at that time, so we just thought we'd take it and see what happened."

We knew that one group had taken over the Roundhouse and the others were mad but I don't think anybody expected them to do what they did

Even though it's been almost 20 years since he stood on Barnes Creek Rd surrounded by the aftermath of one of Queensland's most violent bikie shootouts, Mr Eggleston remembers the incident like it was yesterday.

"They left us alone while we picked up the wounded. They said they wouldn't shoot at us… I took them at their word.

"They were pretty scared…just nervous and apprehensive."

He said there had been rumours floating around before the incident regarding a potential Mackay turf war.

"There were these rumours… that something might happen between certain groups and certain people.

"We knew that one group had taken over the Roundhouse and the others were mad but I don't think anybody expected them to do what they did."

The wounded bikies he treated at the scene that day lay silently, showing little emotion while they were patched up, Mr Eggleston said.

"I think maybe they didn't realise how far it was going to go. They were just quiet… probably thinking what the hell have we done."

Mr Eggleston, who received an Ambulance Service bravery award, said it was one of the most dangerous incidents he'd been involved in.

"You sort of blocked everything else out and made sure everything was safe around the place.

"I was probably there for a couple of hours by the time police got everything settled down."

Originally published as What happened when bikie hell broke loose in Mackay