‘MIRACLE’ CRASH SURVIVAL: Family lucky to be alive after wild road trip to the NT
A FAMILY of four tourists have said they will never forget their road trip to the Territory after two near-death experiences, in which they were shot at with a crossbow while driving, and then walked away after a triple road train slammed into them on the Stuart Hwy.
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A FAMILY of four tourists have said they will never forget their road trip to the Territory after two near-death experiences, in which they were shot at with a crossbow while driving, and walked away unharmed after a triple road train slammed into them while travelling on the highway.
Around 9.30am last Saturday, Victorian man Daniel Penn along with his wife and two children, aged 10 and 14, were on their way back home after a five week road trip to the Territory, when their car and caravan were “cleaned up” by a triple road train while they were stationary on the Stuart Highway.
Mr Penn said it was a “miracle” they are still alive.
Mr Penn said he stopped the car 11 kilometres north of the Erldunda Roadhouse, near the NT/SA border, due to a traffic controller’s instructions. He said the road train managed to turn at the last second and took out the caravan.
“It gave us one hell of a ride.
“The caravan flipped up into the air over our vehicle, onto the trucks windscreen and then scraped down the side of our vehicle.
“The caravan got snapped straight off the tow bar, and was just totally smashed underneath the truck, which ended up pulling up about 20 meters in front of us.
“The caravan was in pieces, and the car was pretty wrecked. It might be a write-off.
“After the car stopped we just looked at each other. My wife and I looked at the kids and we just couldn’t believe that we were still alive.
“My wife and I were aware during the last 20 seconds before the impact that it was not looking good. My wife said to me, ‘We got to get out of here’. I tried to go but it was just way too late.”
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He said had the caravan not been attached to their car their family would not have been so lucky.
“The truck driver managed to pull to the side … which saved our lives.
“I thought it was going straight over us and we would have been squashed under the truck. It was scary as.
“Somehow we were all OK and we got out of the car within 30 seconds in case there was fuel leaking.
“The truck driver ran out of his truck to check on us.
“After the whole incident the truck driver told me he had come over the crest of a hill and couldn’t stop as we were pulled up. He thought the traffic was moving.”
He said the family were so thankful to be alive and felt “really fortunate”.
Weeks earlier in their trip, the family was driving through a Darwin rural area near Berry Springs when their car was shot at with a crossbow.
“The arrow had gone into the car by 15 centimetres. It was quite scary,” Mr Penn said.
“We’ve been here for about four or five weeks, having a bit of a caravan trip we’ve had a pretty eventful trip, we’ve been in the news, previously as well.
“So we’ve had a bit of bad luck with the trip but we’ve also had a ball as well.”
NT Police are investigating the crossbow incident.
Mr Penn thanked the police for their extensive help and support, as well as other travellers who passed the accident and the road workers who assisted them after the crash.
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