Police to probe why truck was past boom gates in fatal South Geelong train smash

An eyewitness of a fatal Geelong railway smash has described the sickening moment of impact, as police probe why the truck involved was on the tracks despite closed boom gates.

UPDATE: Authorities investigating a fatal South Geelong railway smash are probing why the truck involved was on the tracks despite closed boom gates.

The driver, who died at the scene, has been identified as a 57-year-old Ocean Grove man.

A Victoria Police spokeswoman said investigators were told a truck collided with a Melbourne bound V/Line train near Barwon Terrace about 6.40am on Monday.

The truck is understood to have been driving on a gravel road parallel to the level crossing, and appears to have attempted a right hand turn.

The scene of the fatal accident after a truck collided with a train at the railway crossing on Barwon Terrace in South Geelong. Picture: Brad Fleet

“For some reason, he went past the boom gates; we’ll look at the reason why,” Acting Senior-Sergeant Fletcher Pearson said.

Mr Pearson said the train driver had been left “extremely shaken” by the incident.

“It’s not a good scenario, he’s come to work, he’s doing nothing wrong, driving down and for some reason we have got a truck that’s turned onto the tracks in front of him,” he said.

It comes as a Geelong business owner, who saw the “freakish” fatal accident, described hearing the sickening moment of impact.

Mark Reynolds, from South City Panels, told the Geelong Advertiser he had just opened his warehouse on the same road when he heard the train travelling down “and then a big bang”.

“I saw the truck sort of go sideways then it went behind some bushes where I couldn’t see it,” he said.

The boom gates in both directions along Barwon Terrace had been lowered at the time of the crash, investigations are underway as to why the truck was past them. Picture: 7News

“I saw a lot of people who are involved in doing the rail upgrade run out of their offices and within 10 or 15 minutes there were fire trucks and emergency services everywhere.

“A helicopter came in and all that sort of stuff. You just knew it wasn’t good.”

Mr Reynolds said the accident appeared “pretty out of the ordinary”.

“Maybe because of daylight savings the sun was in his (truck driver’s) eyes early in the morning,” he said.

“It seems to be a bit of a freak accident.”

The circumstances surrounding the collision are yet to be determined and a police investigation is ongoing.

Acting Senior-Sergeant Pearson said police were concerned about the number of fatalities Geelong has seen in recent weeks.

“We’ve had four fatalities in the last two weeks in the Geelong region; that’s four families that don’t have someone around for Easter,” he said.

04-04-2023 Fatal accident after a truck collided with a train at the railway crossing on Barwon Terrace in South Geelong. Picture: Brad Fleet

The accident follows a horrific crash on the Ring Road that killed two and left five injured on Thursday, and a crash on School Rd in Corio that left one man dead on March 24. All five people injured in the Ring Road crash have been discharged from hospital, as of Monday morning.

Both V/Line and police will prepare a report for the coroner.

TRANSPORT BUREAU LAUNCH PROBE

The Australian Transport Safety Bureau launched an investigation into the incident late Monday, with officers expected to examine railway infrastructure, the truck and rolling stock.

A spokesman said the train driver, operations staff and witnesses would be interviewed as part of the investigation.

“Should any critical safety issues be identified at any stage during the course of the investigation, the ATSB will immediately notify relevant parties so appropriate safety action can be taken,” a spokesman said.

Both the train driver and conductor on board the train were uninjured.

The train was empty at the time of the crash.

A witness who was at the scene “seconds after” the collision described the moments before emergency services arrived.

“It happened very quickly … people started running over from job sites nearby (to assist),” she said.

An air ambulance leaving the scene. Picture: Brad Fleet

The collision has also wreaked havoc on early morning traffic, with the Barwon Terrace level crossing closed, and commuters banked up on either side.

A spokeswoman for the Department of Transport told the Geelong Advertiser coaches would be replacing trains between South Geelong and Waurn Ponds stations due to the accident.

Drivers are advised to avoid Barwon Terrace and try Breakwater road and Fyans street instead.

A V/Line spokesperson said there would be delays along the Geelong and Warrnambool lines due to the accident.

“We thank passengers for their patience while we work to get them to their destination as quickly and safely as possible following an incident at a level crossing near South Geelong Station,” they said.

Services between Geelong and Southern Cross stations are operating, but V/Line warned there may be some flow on impacts as a result of the incident.

V/Line has advised the Office of the National Rail Safety Regulator (ONRSR) and will conduct an investigation into the incident.

Anyone who witnessed the collision or with dashcam footage is urged to contact Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000 or submit a confidential report online at crimestoppersvic.com.au.

Originally published as Police to probe why truck was past boom gates in fatal South Geelong train smash