Woman from NSW killed after buggy overturns on Hamilton Island
Just a day after the newlywed tragically killed in a golf buggy accident on Hamilton Island was identified, new details have emerged about the circumstances surrounding the event.
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The newlywed tragically killed in a golf buggy accident on Hamilton Island has been identified as Marina Hanna.
The 29-year-old, from Sydney’s inner west, was enjoying her honeymoon with her new husband Robbie Morgan just days after they tied the knot when disaster struck on Monday afternoon.
The couple had married the previous week in Sydney in a lavish celebration at Doltone House before heading to Hamilton Island for a dream honeymoon, but in a tragic twist, it can be revealed the couple delayed their wedding celebrations for a year due to the Covid pandemic.
The original date for the ceremony was July 24, 2021, with the honeymoon to be shortly afterwards. However, lockdowns and then capacity limits on venues led the couple to postpone the wedding until June 11 this year.
An off-duty firefighter and dentist fought frantically to save her after the buggy, driven by her new husband, overturned on Whitsunday Boulevard, on the northern end of the island, about 4.30pm Monday.
The firefighter and dentist were among the first on the scene and immediately started giving first aid to the woman, who had gone into cardiac arrest.
They were joined by a doctor and paramedic from the island, who for 35 minutes performed CPR, but she tragically died at the scene.
Queensland ambulance acting director (Mackay district) Graeme McIntyre praised the efforts of those who were first on the scene and fought to save her life.
“When paramedics arrived, the patient had been removed from the roadway and placed to the side of the road and … in the lateral position to clear her airway which is absolutely fantastic for first aiders to do.”
Police say she was not wearing a seatbelt and that early investigations suggested the vehicle’s battery had gone flat and that the buggy overturned as the driver did a U-turn to go back and charge it.
Queensland police Inspector Anthony Cowan said there was no indication of alcohol or dangerous driving.
“It’s just … tragic that the golf buggy, maybe through inexperience driving those types of vehicles while turning has rolled on its side,” he said.
“Unfortunately the female has fallen out and sustained life-threatening injuries.
“It just appears inexperience in driving that type of vehicle, turned too quick and rolled on its side and unfortunately, it has ended up with this result.”
Inspector Cowan said Hamilton Island golf buggies were fitted with seatbelts, and both police and island management enforced their use.
“They are subject to the same condition as any gazetted road on Hamilton Island,” he said.
“It appears there was no seatbelt worn at this point in time; we come back to the ‘fatal five’, but now is not the time to dwell on what they should have done.”
The woman’s husband was not physically injured.
Golf buggies are the main form of transport on the Queensland tourist hotspot.
All travellers arriving on the island are required to watch an instructional video when they hire one, while guests at the exclusive qualia resort are giving one-on-one tutorials.
Private residences available for vocational rentals also often include buggies, but are governed by the same requirements and regulations.
In a statement, a spokesman for Hamilton Island said all vehicles on the island were required to operate in accordance with Queensland Government road rules and requirements.
“These are underpinned by our highest priority which is the safety and wellbeing of our guests, residents, and staff,” the statement said.
“Golf buggies on Hamilton Island, like other vehicles, are equipped with appropriate safety equipment including seatbelts and rules for operation.
“Hamilton Island and Queensland police enforce these rules and regulations and actively encourage all our guests, residents, and staff to adopt a safety-first mindset when operating any vehicle on Hamilton Island.
“At this time, our deepest thoughts and condolences are with the family and friends of the couple involved in this tragic accident.
“We continue to work closely with Queensland police to investigate the incident.”
A Townsville-based rescue helicopter was initially deployed to the island yesterday, but was stood down because of the severity of the woman’s injuries.
The tragedy comes just weeks after a man was flown to Townsville in a serious condition after suffering head injuries in a buggy crash on Hamilton Island.
Mr McIntyre said buggy crashes were a “common occurrence” on Hamilton Island as the dominant mode of transport.
“But I wouldn’t say it occurs frequently simply because there are a large amount of buggies on the island and inexperienced people using them,” he said.
“They’re just not a common vehicle used anywhere else.
“Take the advice of people who will hire the buggy out to you. They are a completely different type of vehicle to drive.”
He said tragedies on the island were confronting for paramedics because of its location.
“The other one of significance was in 2016 which was horrendous in every respect but it’s had no relation to the one that occurred yesterday afternoon,” he said.
“It’s very confronting, particularly on Hamilton Island.
“In this instance, we have to wait with the deceased person until police are able to collect the person so that involves waiting with the deceased person and any next of kin who are present, so it is quite confronting.”
Six years ago, Hamilton Island stopped using six-seater petrol buggies, following a crash that left a woman and her baby in a critical state and seven others injured.
The nine-month-old girl, who sustained critical head injuries, was sitting on her mother’s lap while her family were being driven to the island’s airport by a local employee. At the time, police said the other injured passengers included four adults, one toddler and another infant.
The golf buggy, which was towing a luggage trailer, crashed into a parked golf cart on the Great Northern Highway.
The passengers were believed to have been from two families who had been holidaying together.
About 600 two- and four-seater buggies remained on the island after the crash. Island officials said 90 per cent of those were the safer model of electric buggies, which can drive a maximum of 20km/h.
The Department of Main Roads and Transport renewed a licence that allowed people to drive buggies on the islands' roads. It had not recommended the island stop using golf buggies after the March 2016 crash.
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