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Man rushed to hospital after a truck crash on the Bruce Highway, St Lawrence

New details from first responders at the scene of a shocking early morning truck crash on the Bruce Highway between Mackay and Rockhampton.

Truck crashed at St Lawrence

New details have emerged in the horror crash of a truck on the Bruce Highway earlier this morning.

Paramedics were called to Heifer Creek in St Lawrence just after 4am after a smoking truck was discovered in the scrub surrounding the creek.

Chelsea McLeod and her partner Cody Poole were driving on the Bruce Highway before 4am when they noticed an orange light in the bush.

“As we drove closer we saw the truck in the ditch with smoke coming out of it,” Ms McLeod said.

“Me and my partner pulled over, put our hazards on and called triple zero.”

Mr Poole ran over and jumped onto the truck, despite the smoke coming off the wreck and tapped on the window.

Ms McLeod said they spoke to the truck driver who told them he’d just turned 70 and was supposed to sleep in St Lawrence.

Onlookers noticed the truck plowed into the embankment off the side of the Bruce Highway in St Lawrence
Onlookers noticed the truck plowed into the embankment off the side of the Bruce Highway in St Lawrence

Ms McLeod said the truck looked like it had “jumped the creek basically” and nose dived into the embankment on the other side of it.

A Queensland Ambulance Service spokeswoman confirmed the truck driver suffered leg and neck injuries and Ms McLeod said they saw he had deep cuts on his shin and “a big cut on his hand”.

“It was bleeding pretty heavily... other than that he was in shock,” Ms McLeod said.

Mr Poole helped pull the driver to safety through the window because the doors were stuck and they gave him some water.

“He said he was a bit embarrassed,” Ms McLeod said.

“He said he’d been driving for 40 years and that was the first time he ever crashed.”

Chelsea McLeod and her partner Cody Poole were driving on the Bruce Highway just before 4am when they noticed an orange light in the bush and rushed to the aid of a 70-year-old truck driver who was injured in the crash. Photo: Chelsea McLeod.
Chelsea McLeod and her partner Cody Poole were driving on the Bruce Highway just before 4am when they noticed an orange light in the bush and rushed to the aid of a 70-year-old truck driver who was injured in the crash. Photo: Chelsea McLeod.

The driver was taken to Rockhampton Hospital in a stable condition.

The Bruce Highway was initially closed in all directions but reopened shortly before 6am.

It comes less than 24 hours after a man died after a truck rollover in the Gold Coast hinterlands.

The man, who was found trapped behind the wheel, was declared dead at the scene.

“The Forensic Crash Unit will be investigating the cause of the traffic crash,” the QPS spokeswoman said.

More to come.

Originally published as Man rushed to hospital after a truck crash on the Bruce Highway, St Lawrence

Original URL: https://www.ntnews.com.au/news/regional/man-rushed-to-hospital-after-a-truck-crash-on-the-bruce-highway-st-lawrence/news-story/d4c44f3778531f2134e8500355270c39