Inquest hears drones should be used to check road safety after Tweed River tragedy

The first emergency responder on the scene where a mother and her children drowned in a 2017 flood tragedy on the NSW north coast says authorities should use drones to check whether hazardous roads must be closed.

• Family ‘heartbreak’ over river deaths
• Inquest hears mum drowned in desperate bid to save kids

The first emergency responder on the scene where a mother and her children drowned in a 2017 flood tragedy on the NSW north coast says authorities should use drones to check whether hazardous roads must be closed.

NSW Ambulance paramedic Grant Pendergast helped frantic locals who jumped into the raging Tweed River as they tried in vain to save Stephanie King and two of her three kids who died when their car skidded off a muddy road at Tumbulgum two years ago.

An inquest into their deaths heard the road they were driving on remained open despite significant risks and Mr Pendergast said although it would be physically impossible for local councils to comb every roadway in a natural disaster, drones would help with such assessments.

Stephanie King, pictured with Ella-Jane Kabealo, 11, both tragically died after the van they were in plunged into the Tweed River. Picture: Facebook

Ms King managed to save Chloe Kabealo, right, before going back to save her other kids. Jacob Kabealo, 7 also died. Picture: Facebook

MORE NEWS

Insane outfits at the Met Gala

‘It’s like eBay’: Dark web ice dealers offering ‘warranty’

Dad drugged daughter and her friend for sex on camping trip

The probe previously heard Ms King had been driving slowly and her heartbroken husband Matt Kabealo told police the cautious 43-year-old would never have put their kids in danger had there been any sign that Dulguigan Road was closed on April 3, 2017.

Former Ambulance NSW deputy director of operations Wayne Mckenna also criticised the fragmented, inconsistent and at times inaccurate safety information shared with the public during the unprecedented deluge, stating there should be one official online source for state and local road closures.

Acting State Coroner Teresa O’Sullivan, who will hand down her findings at Murwillumbah Court on Friday, agreed it appears difficult for people to check if a road is safe in a natural disaster under the current system.

“It doesn’t seem that simple,” she said on Tuesday.

The scene in 2017 as the van is removed from the river. Picture: Glenn Hampson

Byron Bay court previously heard Ms King heroically sacrificed her own life to save her then nine-year-old daughter Chloe-May before the much-loved nurse drowned alongside Ella-Jane, 11, and Jacob, seven, days after ex-Cyclone Debbie caused record flooding in the area.

Eye witness Suzette Wheatley had been dropping off drinks to people cleaning debris from their homes when she saw the van plunge into the swollen river, the court heard.

The Tweed Heads local said she immediately called triple-zero and drove down to the crash site but bogged her car in 40cm-deep silt.

“It was like nothing I’ve seen before. It wasn’t like normal mud, it was really thick, almost like tar,” she told the inquest.

The court heard Chloe-May swam to shore and raised the alarm with neighbours, who ran down to the riverbank and were already diving into the murky water to find their sinking van by the time Mr Pendergast arrived.

The local came with two Special Operations Team paramedics from Sydney trained in swift water access.

Devastated husband to Ms King and father of the kids was present at the inquest. Picture: Danielle Smith

“One of the SOT officers put his wetsuit and diving gear on, attached to a rope secured on the bank, and he started to dive,” he said.

“When you arrived there were a number of civilians already in the water?” Counsel assisting the coroner Dr Peggy Dwyer asked.

“Yes.”

Together they desperately searched for Ms King and her children alongside police and State Emergency Service volunteers, the court heard.

“(But) at some stage it was appreciated that nobody could have survived the accident and it had to shift to recovery of the car and its occupants,” Dr Dwyer said.

The inquest is examining whether appropriate measures were taken by Tweed Shire Council to warn the public of the dangers of driving with Roads and Storm Water manager Danny Rose due to give evidence on Wednesday.

Detective Senior Constable Scott Wilcox will also read a statement from the family before the three-day inquest concludes and Ms O’Sullivan hands down any recommendations.

Originally published as Inquest hears drones should be used to check road safety after Tweed River tragedy