Police warn motorists to obey the road rules as Queensland’s road toll reaches 33 for 2021
A “disturbing” number of people have died on Qld roads this year prompting a police crack down. Here are the 33 victims.
Moreton
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Acting Chief Superintendent Ray Rohweder described Queensland’s rising road toll as “disturbing” and has called on all road users to step up their game and simply “do the right thing”.
A total of 33 people have been killed as a result of traffic crashes across the state this year – 15 more than the same time last year.
SCROLL DOWN FOR A BREAKDOWN OF FATAL CRASHES
“I find that quite disturbing,” Acting Chief Superintendent Rohweder said.
“We really need to get the message through to all those drivers out there using the road network that they need to obey the road rules.
“It is the driving public who decide how they conduct themselves on the road.”
He warned that those who chose to disobey the rules were not just putting their own lives at risk – but everyone else on the road.
Acting Chief Superintendent Rohweder warning followed the conclusion of operation Sierra Noella which ran from December 9 to January 29.
“More than 1,700 people were injured in crashes across the holiday period, an increase of more than 200 on the same period last year,” Acting Chief Superintendent Rohweder said.
Speed remained the biggest offence committed on the roads during the operation.
“Nearly 15,000 infringements were issued to speeding drivers while almost 125,000 more were detected by speed cameras,” he said
“Speeding infringements were up by 31 per cent compared to last year, despite repeated appeals from police and an increasing number of lives lost.”
Of 145,525 roadside breath tests conducted, 2,133 drivers were detected over the legal limit.
“Drug driving still remains a problem on our roads,” Acting Chief Superintendent Rohweder said.
“Of 4,391 drug tests conducted, more than a quarter of drivers returned a positive result.
“These are very disappointing results and police will pay particular attention to drug driving during the next few months.”
FATAL CRASH BREAKDOWN
January 1
A man on a working holiday visa has been charged with the hit-and-run death of a 21-year-old Sunshine Coast man.
The Minyama man died after he was struck by a vehicle on Maroochydore Blvd about 1.30am on January 1.
Paramedics were unable to revive him.
JANUARY 6
A man in his 40s died in a single-truck rollover near Mount Isa just after midday on January 6.
A passer-by found the crash site on Cloncurry-Dajarra Rd at Kuridala and called police about 12.20pm.
Emergency services rushed to the scene but the 46-year-old man, who was a local to the area, died at the scene.
JANUARY 10
A man has died after the campervan he was driving collided with a pylon of a rail bridge overpass and caught on fire.
Police say the campervan was travelling south on Lowmead Road about 5.30pm on January 10 when it collided with the bridge.
The man, who has yet to be identified died at the scene.
The rail line was closed for several hours while structural inspections of the bridge were carried out.
The Forensic Crash Unit continues to investigate.
JANUARY 15
A 22-year-old woman died at the scene of a horror two-vehicle crash in the South Burnett region on January 15.
Police investigations indicate at about 11.50am, a dual cab utility and a hatchback collided at the intersection of Chinchilla Wondai Rd and Cushnie Rd in Cushnie.
The front passenger of the hatchback, a 22-year-old Murgon woman, died at the scene.
JANUARY 16
A motorcyclist has died after he collided with a car near Gympie on January 16.
Initial police reports suggest the 29-year-old was riding his motorcycle when he collided with a car around 7.30 on Old Maryborough Rd in Chatsworth.
The Glenwood man died at the scene.
JANUARY 18
Police are seeking information after a single-vehicle crash claimed the life of a man in the South Burnett region early on Monday, January 18
Police say the man was driving on the D’Aguilar Highway around six kilometres north of Yarraman, near South Nanango, when the crash occurred.
Investigations so far show the man’s black Ford Falcon sedan went off the road and hit a large rock, before it was thrown into a tree.
They are not sure what time the incident happened this morning as a passing truck driver came across the wreckage at around 5.30am
JANUARY 20
A 35-year-old Park Ridge man has died after a crash involving a motorcycle and a prime mover in a Logan industrial estate.
Emergency services were called to the scene at the corner of Magnesium Drive and Radium St about 7pm on January 20
His mum Cathy Kevill described her son as “beautiful” and a man who “would do anything for anyone”.
His nephew lead a funeral procession of more than 300 motorbikes
JANUARY 21
Rhys Yore, a 16-year-old, student was killed in a crash at Yeppon on January 21.
Rhys, a student at St Brendan’s College, was thrown from the car when it left the road and rolled on Appleton Drive, in Central Queensland.
The teen is being remembered for his sense of humour and “send it” philosophy on life.
JANUARY 21
A man died after a 4WD towing a caravan crashed into a tree on the Bruce Highway northbound at Booyal, just north of Childers, about 11.30am.
Critical care paramedics attended the scene.
JANUARY 22
And in far north Queensland, a 49-year-old man critically injured after being struck by a vehicle in Barron on Friday afternoon has died as a result of his injuries.
JANUARY 23
More than $30,000 was raised in just 24 hours in an outpouring of community support for the grieving family of Adam Lumsden, the Warner man who was tragically killed in a Bracken Ridge car accident on January 23.
The 37-year-old father-of-two was driving home from a game of hockey when his car veered off the road, into the front yard of a suburban home on Telegraph Rd, where the vehicle flipped and crashed into a tree at around 10.30pm.
He is survived by his wife, Nikki-Lee Holden and their two children, aged five and 15 months old.
JANUARY 24
Two men died and a third was injured after the car they were travelling in rolled in a single vehicle accident in the early hours of January 24.
The incident happened at 4.37am on the Bunya Highway at Taabinga, south of Kingaroy.
As a result of the crash a 34-year-old man and 39-year-old man died from their injuries.
A 24-year-old male passenger was transported to Kingaroy Hospital and was subsequently transferred to Brisbane via helicopter for treatment of his injuries.
JANUARY 26
Kate Leadbetter was six months pregnant with her partner Matty Field’s child when they were tragically killed at the intersection of Vienna and Finucane Roads at Alexandra Hills on Australia Day.
It will be alleged they were hit by a truck which had been slammed into by an allegedly stolen LandCruiser.
The couple had been out walking their dog.
Police allege a 17-year-old Waterford West male, whose charges include two counts of murder and one count of dangerous operation of a vehicle (adversely affected by an intoxicating substance), was driving the stolen vehicle.
JANUARY 31
Tributes are flowing for the 26-year-old Warner man who died in a car crash north of Brisbane on January 31.
Police are still investigating the circumstances surrounding the crash but initial investigations suggest that at about 10.15am on Sunday at Kremzow Rd, Cashmere, a car driven by Alex collided with a Mitsubishi Triton travelling in the opposite direction.
Alex was declared dead at the scene.
Friend Brad Dockery has started a Go Fund Me page for Alex in an effort raise money for his funeral.
“Alex was such a positive influence and there will never be enough words to explain his influence in this world and how much he will be dearly missed by all,” Mr Dockery wrote.
FEBRUARY 1
A truck driver trapped after his truck rolled down an embankment south west of Gympie has died.
It is understood the driver was trapped for some time as rescue teams worked to find a safe way to access him.
Police, firefighters and paramedics were called to the rollover at Yabba Creek Rd at Imbil about 2.15pm
FEBRUARY 5
Aspiring policewoman Jennifer Board was killed in a horror crash at Townsville on February 5.
Ms Board, 22, a gym manager who had recently applied to join Queensland Police Service, was killed on Thursday night in Townsville when a car hit the back of a stolen vehicle “at speed”, spun onto the wrong side of the road and hit her as she rode her motorcycle.
Ms Board’s older sister, Siana Board, said the “beautiful, kind” woman was the last person in the world to deserve this fate.
FEBRUARY 5
The 30-year-old Bethania man who died following a two-vehicle crash at Slacks Creek on February 5 has been identified as Abel Prassler.
Police say that just before 7am Mr Prassler was travelling southbound on Compton Rd when the motorbike he was riding collided with a red Nissan hatchback which was travelling northbound.
Police and emergency services attended but sadly Mr Prassler was pronounced deceased at the scene.
The Albert & Logan News understand Mr Prassler was just minutes away from his workplace, the Honda motorcycle dealership when the crash occurred and that he had just recently proposed to his girlfriend.
FEBRUARY 5
A 70-year-old man was killed in a two-vehicle crash in Bundaberg on Friday, February 5
The man who is local to the region was riding his motorcycle when he collided with a 4WD at the intersection of Boundary and Walker streets in Kepnock at 2.30pm.
He was declared dead at the scene.
FEBRUARY 6
A woman has died from injuries sustained when her car collided with a truck west of Brisbane on the weekend.
The 35-year-old was trapped in her car after the incident, which occurred around 8.30am on February 6 along Mount Juillerat Drive between Sunbird Drive and the Centenary Highway in Redbank Plains.
She was critically injured in the crash and taken to the Princess Alexandra Hospital on Saturday where she succumbed to her injuries on Tuesday, February 9.
FEBRUARY 7
A man has died after his motorcycle crashed into a pole on the Sunshine Coast on February 7
Initial police reports suggest a 26-year-old Urangan man was driving on Eenie Creek Road in Sunshine Beach around 7.15pm when he crashed into a pole.
He died at the scene.
Police were in the area patrolling for a motorcycle after reports one had been driving erratically.
Investigations indicate the motorcycle sped off when the rider spotted a police car.
FEBRUARY 7
A 42-year-old Roma woman has been killed after the ute she was driving crashed and rolled several times on the Warrego Hwy on February 7.
The crash occurred about 5km near Amby, west of Roma, about 7.40pm.
The driver and sole occupant of the vehicle, a 42-year-old Roma woman, died at the scene.
FEBRUARY 8
A man has died after the car he was a passenger in left the road and rolled before hitting a tree in Far North Queensland.
Police reports suggest a man in his 20s was a passenger in a four-wheel drive when the driver, a woman in her 30s, lost control of the car before it hit a tree when heading east on Mareeba Dimbulah Road near Tyrconnell Road at about 4.35pm.
The man died at the scene while the woman was flown to Cairns Hospital in a serious condition.
FEBRUARY10
A nineteen-year-old cyclist died after his bike and a car travelling in the opposite direction collided.
The incident occurred on Lake Morris Rd at Kanimbla, near Cairns, about 6.10pm.
Luke Azzopardi, the cyclist, from Gordonvale, was pronounced dead at the scene.
Mr Azzopardi was a former state cycling champion and had been earmarked as a rider to watch over the coming years.
FEBRUARY 10
A 20-year-old man has died after his motorcycle left the road and crashed off the side of a highway in Gladstone on February 10.
Police were called to the scene at Gladstone Mount Larcom Road in Aldoga just after midnight on Wednesday.
The motorcyclist was declared dead at the scene. Police say there was no one else involved and the Forensic Crash Unit are investigating.
FEBRUARY 15
Jake Dorin, 24, has been remembered as the “best dad a child could ask for”.
“The best father a child could have, an amazing uncle who adored all his nieces and nephews, a loving husband and a beautiful son,” a loved one wrote online.
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