Motorcyclist killed hours after three teens killed in crash nearby

Frustrated police say it will take more than tougher law enforcement to stop the carnage on Queensland roads after a horror weekend which saw four people die in two accidents in Mackay alone. LATEST

A tribute has sprung up at the Glenella location where three Mackay 19-year-olds died in a car crash on Friday night. Picture: Fergus Gregg

Frustrated police say it will take more than tougher law enforcement to stop the carnage on Queensland roads after a horror weekend which saw four people die in two accidents in Mackay alone.

Three teenage friends were killed on the Mackay Ring Road when a Mazda travelling south bound behind a semi-trailer tried to overtake the truck in the 100km zone.

The occupants of the Mazda, two 19-year-old men, one of who was the driver and the other the front passenger, and a 19-year-old woman who was a back passenger, died when it crashed head-on with a Great Wall ute about 10.30pm Friday.

The ute then also clipped the truck’s trailer causing some damage before ending up on its roof on the roadway.

A fourth vehicle, an Isuzu towing a caravan and also travelling northbound, did not see the upside-down ute on the road and veered off the road, ending up down an embankment.

The scene of a horror crash where three teenagers were tragically killed at Glenella, near Mackay overnight.

The driver of the Great Wall, a 29-year-old Blacks Beach man, was taken to Mackay Base Hospital with minor leg injuries.

Three others including the drivers of the car towing the caravan and the 68-year-old Kelso truck driver declined transport to hospital.

The Isuzu towing a caravan which struck an upside down ute. Picture: Craig Schofield/Facebook

Police are investigating whether fog played a part in a crash which claimed lives of three teenagers in the same region overnight.

In the second fatal crash, a motorcyclist hit the back of a trailer, sending him across two lanes near the Bruce Hwy on Saturday morning.

The Mackay Bucasia Rd, where a woman could be seen screaming in distress as a helmet sat in the middle of the road and a witness described the horror that had unfolded, remained closed as of noon.

Mackay district officer Supt Dean Cavanagh told media on Monday that police were continuing to investigate the circumstances of both crashes.

He said it was too early in the investigation to identify any cause or blame.

A Great Wall ended up on its roof during the chaos.

But in general, he said drivers knew the fatal five and had to focus ‘100 per cent’ of the time and drive to the conditions, whether it was fog, rain, heavy traffic.

He said police had increased random breath testing in the district by 40% and drug testing of drivers by 10 per cent but said the wider community had to play its part.

“Everyone knows what to do. As I said, there are no secrets. What we need to do though, is really focus on that driver decision-making.

“We need to focus heavily on making the right decision all the time.

“Driving is something that you can't do well just 90% of the time. It's got to be 100% focused and really focused on doing the right thing personally and for other road users.”

Supt Cavanagh said police’s thoughts were with the “family and friends who have lost loved ones over this weekend”.

The crash sent a car seat head rest and other car parts across the surrounding cane fields.

“ But I ask the greater community to come together, start that message about road safety, and continue to do the right thing.”

He said the Forensic Crash Unit would be looking at every factor that could have been involved in the crashes on the weekend, including whether lighting on the Mackay Ring Road was adequate.

It’s understood heavy fog had descended on the region at the time and the section of road where the crash happened was out of town, between the now shrapnel-strewn cane paddocks where debris, car parts and even a seat head rest could be seen on Saturday morning.

As news of the tragedy spread on social media, several commented about the tough conditions.

Stephanie Wano wrote “fog was heavy in some parts on the ring road last night. We could barely see the lights on the police cars and the officers waving cars down to turn around. Condolences to those that lost their lives”.

The scene where three 19-year-olds tragically lost their lives.

Security footage on a camera at a nearby cane farm also showed fog in the area at the time of the crash.

Resident Ricky Barnes said he woke to people walking along the road beside the site of the crash.

“The fog has been really thick previous nights, but it didn’t appear to be as bad last night,” he said.

The triple fatal brings the Mackay district road toll to 10 deaths from eight crashes.

It also comes less than 24-hours after a crash in the Gympie region which claimed the life of a 21-year-old woman and left a 17-year-old seriously injured and after a “high impact” crash sent a man to hospital in nearby Chelona on Friday afternoon.

The driver from the Chelona crash was taken to Mackay Base Hospital in a stable condition. Picture: Luke Lay

A Queensland Ambulance spokeswoman said they were treating a man with pelvic and chest injuries but he was in a stable condition.

Originally published as Motorcyclist killed hours after three teens killed in crash nearby