Coroner’s report: Friend’s numerous attempts could not save drink driving father

A coroner has found an East Devonport man was more than five times the limit and was speeding at the time of his death, as it’s revealed his friends tried to stop him driving drunk.

Wayne Phillip Dennis was drunk and speeding when he lost control of his car and collided with a tree stump.

COLLEAGUES had tried to take the car keys from barman and single father Wayne Phillip Dennis’ numerous times the night he died in a collision with a tree stump at Wesley Vale.

Coroner Andrew McKee found the 31-year-old East Devonport man had more than five times the legal blood alcohol concentration and was speeding at the time of his death on February 15 last year.

Police found Mr Dennis deceased at the front of his white Toyota Camry on the side of Port Sorell Rd at 3.13am that morning.

A man from a property neighbouring the area was also at the scene having heard the crash.

Coroner McKee said in his report that Mr Dennis had been working at the Shearwater Resort Tavern the night before his death.

At the end of his shift he stayed at the tavern and continued drinking with a group of friends until midnight when they left to go to one of the men’s homes.

Having become “progressively more intoxicated throughout the evening” and despite numerous offers of a lift home, an offer of a place to sleep, numerous failed attempts by the men to take his car keys and after one of the men read him the Riot Act, Mr Dennis disappeared from the home between 2.30am and 2.45am.

READ MORE:

• Coroner hands down findings into the death of Kim Leonie Maree Szemes
• Coroner releases findings into death of East Coast mum
• Coroner says report into death of Claremont woman lacked evidence

Friends tried to take Wayne Phillip Dennis’ car keys before he died in a fatal crash.

It was presumed he had snuck away and gone home.

He was found by police about 30 minutes later with his substantially damaged car lodged against a tree.

Paramedics declared him dead at the scene.

Crash scene investigations found Mr Dennis had been driving 120km/h in an 80km/h zone and was about to negotiate a slight right hand curve when the vehicle went into a yaw, slid sideways across both lanes of road and a grass verge and collided with a rotten tree stump.

“Upon impact the vehicle also tipped up, crushing the roof as it wrapped around the tree trunk,” Coroner McKee said.

“At some stage during the crash sequence, Mr Dennis was ejected from the vehicle coming to

land 2.3 metres from the edge line and directly in front of the vehicle itself.

“I am satisfied … Mr Dennis was not wearing his seatbelt.”

READ MORE:

• Autopsy report shows George Floyd had COVID-19 when he died

It was pathologist Dr Terence Brain’s opinion that Mr Dennis died of blood loss due to multiple fractures.

“As a result of consuming alcohol, his driving performance was significantly impaired to the point of being unable to properly control a motor vehicle,” Coroner McKee said.

“This case is just one further example of the consequences that flow from an individual’s

decision to drive a motor vehicle whilst exceeding the prescribed alcohol limit of 0.05g of

alcohol per 100ml of blood and exceeding the applicable speed limit.

“This was yet another collision that exposed first responders, namely police officers and paramedics and a member of the public to another fatal collision.”