Rural Road Safety Month: Jarwin Rooney shares ongoing trauma after losing mum Jessica in Coffs Harbour car crash

As Rural Road Safety Month begins, a Mid-North-Coast son who lost his mother in a Coffs Harbour highway crash speaks out on the ongoing impact to raise awareness.

The Westpac helicopter as it took off from the York St Oval after the Park Beach car accident that claimed the life of Jessica Rooney on November 13 2022.

Losing his mother in a car crash has led 16-year-old Jarwin Rooney to speak out in an effort to urge people to be safer behind the wheel.

Mr Rooney lost his mother Jessica Rooney, 36, in a Coffs Harbour highway car crash near Park Beach, on November 13 2022.

The accident occurred while Ms Rooney and her three children were waiting at traffic lights when an out-of-control car hit their vehicle.

Mr Rooney, who was 14 at the time, still feels the ongoing impact of the trauma he experienced that day.

The Rooney family: Ian, Jai, Jaime, Baija, Jackson (front), Joanne and Jarwin.

“I’m still scared of everyday travel,” Mr Rooney said.

“The fear of a car crash happening again is always in the back of my head.”

And the ongoing loss of his mother and best friend is still raw.

“Losing my mum was like losing a friend of mine too. She was there for me when no-one else was,” he said.

Mr Rooney addressed a crowd on Tuesday to launch Rural Road Safety Month at Coffs Harbour’s Diggers Beach.

NSW Police Assistant Commissioner David Driver, CEO of the Australian Road Safety Foundation Russell White and Jarwin Rooney at the Rural Road Safety Month launch at Coffs Harbour.

The Australian Road Safety Foundation (ARSF) released new research at the launch revealing that more than two-thirds of fatalities recorded in NSW last year, a total of 233 deaths, occurred on regional roads.

ARSF Founder and CEO Russell White said despite the deaths occurring regionally, it is not just a problem for local drivers.

“Nearly nine in ten of the states’ drivers were using the regional road networks so the bottom line is regional road safety affects everyone no matter where we live,” Mr White said.

The ARSF research showed a five per cent increase in regional and rural fatal road crashes last year with many drivers reporting taking risks in rural and regional areas.

A sunflower for every fatality on rural and regional roads last year, at the launch of Rural Road Safety Month at Coffs Harbour.

“Our research shows that the most dominant dangerous acts on regional roads are things like speeding, driving while they’re fatigued and also using a mobile phone,” he said.

“There’s a misguided belief that the road is somehow less risky or safer simply because there’s less traffic around.

“Drivers aren’t just the risk of being caught, they risk having a crash.”

This Rural Road Safety Month, Mr White is urging drivers to be resilient.

“By putting safety first and undertake simple actions, such as planning routes, taking rest breaks and avoiding distractions, we can prevent death or serious injury on the road,” he said.