Homeless man who lost mini bus in fatal crash at Kippa-Ring, knew the rider who died

A homeless man was driving the mini bus he was living in when it was involved in a fatal crash involving a motorcyclist.

Darren Waller fishing by the river. Mr Waller lost his mini bus in a fatal crash involving Luke Irwin, a man he knew, at Kippa-Ring. Picture: Supplied

A homeless man was driving the mini bus he was living in when it was involved in a fatal crash involving a motorcyclist and fellow fisherman he knew at Redcliffe.

Darren Waller lost the mini bus he was living in when it was involved in a fiery crash that killed 26-year-old motorcyclist and father-of-four Luke Irwin at Kippa-Ring on Monday, June 16.

Emergency services were called to the crash between a motorbike and a Mitsubishi Fuso minibus at the intersection of Anzac Ave and Oleander St at Kippa-Ring, just after 9.30pm.

Darren Waller lost his mini bus in the fatal crash at Kippa-Ring. Photo: Supplied

Mr Irwin, who was the motorbike rider, suffered critical injuries and died at the scene.

Mr Irwin, his wife Jade Hatcher, and a friend were fishing off Redcliffe Jetty that evening when he made the decision to head home to get more bait at about 9pm.

Luke Irwin, 26, died in a firey motorcycle crash in Kippa Ring on June 17. Photo: supplied

But as Mr Irwin rode his motorcycle back to his wife, his life tragically ended after colliding with the Mitsubishi Fuso minibus that was driven by Mr Waller.

Mr Irwin’s friend returned to the jetty where the trio had been fishing, and told her there had been a fatal accident up the road and Mr Irwin’s bike was on the ground near the crash site.

Luke Irwin was a keen fisherman. Photo: supplied

Mr Waller was heading to the Kippa-Ring Shopping Centre when the crash happened.

“I was turning right on to Oleander St and pretty much got through the turn and then bang,” he said.

“It was instant, it was a bang I’ve never ever heard before.”

Mr Waller’s minibus, which he had been living in for several years, burst into flames, while Mr Irwin, who was the rider of the bike, was killed instantly.

Darren Waller lost all his possessions in the fatal crash at Kippa-Ring. Photo: Supplied

Mr Waller received minor burns while trying to extinguish the fire and was taken to Redcliffe Hospital for treatment.

“I saw the fire starting to happen, so I got a fire extinguisher and pulled the trigger, it failed me, and then I was dragged away,” he said.

The 51-year-old lost everything except the clothes he was wearing and his dog Bow, leaving him homeless and traumatised.

“I’ve lost everything, my hobbies, memories, identification, and my house,” Mr Waller said.

“I didn’t get a single thing out, I just got my dog out, I didn’t get any ID or phone or anything like that.

“I lost my kids’ photos, everything.

“I wish it didn’t happen - it’s a tragedy.”

In a tragic twist, Mr Waller knew Mr Irwin, the rider of the motorbike who was killed.

“I knew him from down the creek where I fished,” he said.

“I was fishing by myself and they went down there fishing and we’d have a chat.

“I knew him over time, he was a loving dad.”

Darren Waller was a keen fisherman and met Luke Irwin through fishing by a creek at Redcliffe. Photo: Supplied

Mr Waller said he found out through mutual friends that picked him up from hospital that Mr Irwin had passed away.

“The people that picked me up said that they got a message that Luke had died, that’s when it all came together,” he said.

“It was very tragic, straight away at the scene I said I felt sorry for the motorbike rider’s family, I didn’t know who it was at the time.”

Acknowledging a fundraiser that has been set up by his friend Michelle Horan to help him get back on his feet, Mr Waller said he would like to thank everyone who supported it.

“I would like to thank the community for all the support,” he said.

In launching the fundraiser, Ms Horan said

“I just wanted to do something to support him. So he had been living in a bus that he had managed to purchase for himself because he was homeless,” she said.

“He lost everything, he tried to put it out himself, but none of his fire extinguishers would work, so he just had to watch his home and everything that he owned go up in flames.

“So I decided that I’d reach out to my family and friends and ask for some support. My hopes were that I would be able to get enough money to just help him replace some essential, you know, some essential items like clothing and shoes and things like that.”

Investigations into the cause of the crash are continuing and no charges have been laid.

Originally published as Homeless man who lost mini bus in fatal crash at Kippa-Ring, knew the rider who died