P-plate speeding has doubled in 2023 – as police tell of the horror they see at crashes

As police recount screams of horror, the smell of burning fuel mixed with human blood — the reality of a crash speeding P-plate drivers need to know — three more people die on NSW roads.

Three more people have lost their lives on the state’s roadways, just hours after NSW Police officers shared stories of carnage they see when responding to car accidents in a bid to prevent more tragedies.

The three back-seat passengers — two women and a man — died when the vehicle they were travelling in lost control on the Kamilaroi Highway, south of Gunnedah, on Wednesday morning.

Emergency services responded to reports of the single-vehicle crash about 6.30am.

The three who died at the scene are yet to be formally identified; but are believed to all be aged in their 20s.

The driver – a 24-year-old man – has arm and chest injuries and is being treated at Tamworth Hospital, as well as undergoing mandatory testing.

The front seat passenger – a woman – was flown to John Hunter Hospital in a serious condition.

The Kamilaroi Highway was still closed between Curlewis and Gunnedah midafternoon, with motorists urged to avoid the area.

The vehicle lost control on the Kamilaroi Highway near Gunnedah. Picture: Jim Trifyllis

ALARMING P-PLATE STATISTICS

Meanwhile police say the screams of horror and the smell of burning fuel mixed with fresh human blood are the reality of a crash that drivers — especially speeding P-plate drivers — need to know.

Ahead of the busy Christmas period The Daily Telegraph can reveal concerning new statistics that show P-plate drivers have been caught speeding twice as much in 2023 as they were last year.

With the busiest two weeks of the year still to come more than 16,000 provisional drivers have already been caught speeding, compared to 8280 in 2022.

NSW Police Highway Patrol boss Brett McFadden said that just short of 3000 of those P-platers were speeding at more than 30km/h over the limit.

“When you start looking at our provisional drivers, these are the ones in their first two or three years of driving,” Assistant Commission McFadden said.

Highway Patrol officer Sergeant Natasha Lindsay and Sergeant Kristy Foster from the Crash Investigation Unit. Picture: Sam Ruttyn

“Every time we stop a speeding driver, every time we stop a drunk driver or a drug driver, it’s a sliding doors moment — in five minutes, that could have been the next fatal crash that we’re going to.”

In a bid to prevent another horror Christmas and New Year period, police officers have told of the carnage they see when called out to car accidents, including those that have killed 349 people in NSW so far in 2023.

NSW Police Highway Patrol officer Natasha Lindsay says there are scents and sounds that stick with you forever.

“There’s the rubber smell, the brake fluid smell, but for me it’s more the sound of the people that are around when you arrive at a scene,” Sgt Lindsay said.

“The yelling, the crying, the screaming. They’re in your face before you can even get out of the car.”

All that was left of a car after a crash at Buxton, southwest of Sydney, that claimed the lives of five teenagers. Picture: John Grainger

Other police officers told how the mix of oil, blood and faeces creates a horrid smell they can still remember years down the track.

Kristy Foster has been an officer in the Crash Investigation Unit for 17 years, responsible for working out what has happened in some of the state’s worst fatal collisions.

One of the hardest parts of her job is having to tell families exactly how their loved one died after a crash that on many occasions left their car mangled.

A crash that sticks in her mind is the death of five children at Buxton, southwest of Sydney, in September 2022 for which Tyrell Edwards is currently serving a seven-year sentence.

“What stands out is just how senseless (and) how avoidable (it was), it never really had to happen,” Sergeant Foster said.

Highway Patrol boss Assistant Commissioner Brett McFadden revealed there have been twice as many speeding P-platers caught in 2023, compared to 2022.. Picture: David Swift

“It just goes to show that there’s such a change in drivers attitude. There’s a lot more risk taking behaviour, wanting to capture what happens, I assume that’s (due partly to) the rise in social media.

“I’d urge people to think of the worst thing that can probably happen.

“If you get charged that’s one thing, but if you kill a family or your best mate, it doesn’t really matter what happens to you after that.

“It’s not until something bad happens to someone, that they can actually take on board how serious it is to be involved in a tragedy.”