Sunshine Coast drivers urged to be smarter on roads as Queensland Police launch safety campaign
More than 170 people have been killed on Queensland roads this year, the highest in a decade. That number is sadly expected to increase before 2021 comes to a close.
Sunshine Coast
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More than 170 people have died on Queensland roads this year, including many Sunshine Coast residents whose lives were tragically taken too soon.
Recent Queensland Police Service data suggests the state is on track to have 300 Queenslanders die in fatal crashes in 2021.
Sunshine Coast District Superintendent Craig Hawkins said ten lives were lost in crashes on roads within the district, compared to six at the same time last year.
“The fatal five factors of speed, drink driving, drug driving, fatigue and not wearing seat belts has a direct consequence on your life and those around you,” he said.
“On the Sunshine Coast you can expect police anywhere, anytime targeting these offences to ensure the safety of all road users.”
Assistant Commissioner Ben Marcus said it had been more than a decade since the state had 300 deaths in one year on Queensland roads.
“We have a problem here in Queensland, and that is that too many drivers are taking risks that end in disaster,” Assistant Commissioner Marcus said.
“There have been 174 lives lost on Queensland roads so far this year, which is 19 more than the same time last year.”
A new series of road safety videos urging road users to make better decisions behind the wheel was launched on Monday for Queensland Road Safety Week.
The Daily looks back at some of the tragic stories reported this year:
Henry Jennings
A 21-year-old killed in an alleged hit and run in Maroochydore is being remembered as a funny, kind young man taken too soon.
Family and friends of former Matthew Flinders Anglican College graduate Henry Jennings had a tragic start to the year.
Paramedics were unable to revive Mr Jennings after they were called to Maroochy Blvd at 1.30am on January 1, 2021.
Andrea D‘Onofrio, 25, was charged with one count of a dangerous operation of a vehicle causing death or grievous bodily harm and leaving the scene without obtaining help.
Mr D‘Onofrio was due to be sentenced on September 13 and was yet to enter any formal pleas.
Motorcyclist dies
A 25-year-old Maroochydore man died when he was thrown from his motorbike while not wearing a helmet in June.
Initial investigations suggest the motorcyclist and a passenger were headed north on Centenary Crescent, Maroochydore, when the rider lost control on a curve and hit the gutter about 10.15pm on June 13.
Both men were thrown from the bike and neither was wearing a helmet.
The rider died at the scene, while the passenger, a 25-year-old Maroochydore man, was taken to Sunshine Coast University Hospital with non-life-threatening injuries.
Investigations are continuing.
Kerry Bowe
A hinterland town was left in shock after a horror smash killed a 71-year-old man described as a great mate.
Kenilworth man Kerry Bowe died after he had to be cut from his vehicle after a two-car crash near Maleny on May 27.
He was remembered as a “great mate who looked after everyone”.
The husband and father was part of a group who launched a men’s shed at Brooloo three years ago.
“He was a very personable fellow, he managed to look after us very well,” Numabulla Men’s Shed secretary Dennis James said.
“He was a great mate.
“We were all shocked to hear that the accident … actually involved him.”
Police have charged a 51-year-old Sunshine Coast woman following fatal crash.
The woman was due to appear in the Maroochydore Magistrates Court on August 30.
Harry Hall
Buddina man Harry Hall was identified as the victim of the shocking crash which left a beachside community shattered.
Emergency crews were called to the Nicklin Way scene, near the intersection of Moondara Drive, shortly after 6am on July 28.
Preliminary investigations found a ute was travelling along the major road when it collided with a sedan.
An eyewitness said it took crews more than an hour to free Mr Hall from the wreckage.
He was rushed to the Sunshine Coast University Hospital but he could not be saved.
Friends took to social media to pay tribute to Mr Hall, describing him as the “very best” and a “legend”.
The 41-year-old driver of the ute suffered minor injuries.
He was also taken to Sunshine Coast University Hospital for further treatment.
The Forensic Crash Unit is investigating.
Teenager killed
A teenage boy tragically died after the motorbike he was riding collided with a car in the Noosa region in July.
Initial inquiries suggested a Suzuki motorbike travelling north crashed with a Subaru Forrester station wagon heading in the opposite direction along Greenridge Pinbarren Road at Cooran about 9pm on July 10.
Despite CPR being performed the 17-year-old local boy died at the scene.
The 29-year-old male driver of the Forrester was not injured.
The Forensic Crash Unit is appealing for anyone with dashcam vision or further information to contact police.
Inquiries are continuing to be made.
Liam Van Horen
Liam Van Horen, 24, was working towards his goal of helping others when his life was cut short on a Sunshine Coast street on July 3.
Mr Van Horen died in a Sippy Downs accident when he was struck by a car.
He had been out with friends after winning a reserve grade rugby union match playing for the University of the Sunshine Coast against Caloundra.
It’s understood he became separated from the group and was lying on Parkville Street when the incident happened.
Ruth Harris said her son had a passion for helping people.
“He reached out to people, he would do things for people without them even asking (and) he would just intuitively know what people needed,” Ms Harris said.
“People wanted to be near him.”
She said her son was studying to be a paramedic, a profession which naturally suited his personality.
Assistant Commissioner Marcus urged people to be more responsible when behind the wheel.
“We know that most crashes are preventable – the simple act of putting on your seatbelt, slowing down or ignoring your phone can make all the difference in whether you reach your destination safely or if you end up being extracted from a vehicle by emergency services,” he said.
“We don’t see the people lost on our roads as just a number – they are people just like us, with families and loved ones. They can choose to make safer decisions behind the wheel that will prevent them from appearing in a real-life scenario very much like the crash depicted in these videos.”
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