A man has been detained following a “catastrophic” automobile crash in Australia that killed a 30-year-old mother and her 10-year-old daughter while injuring her three other children.
According to Queensland police, the incident occurred at 6:30 a.m. local time on Friday, November 7, in the rural Indigenous town of Doomadgee.
According to police, the mother’s Toyota Land Cruiser collided with a Nissan Maxima and rolled over while transporting her two girls and two sons (ages 1, 3, 4, and 10). The victims’ identities have not been revealed.
The mother was pronounced dead on the site of the incident, and the 10-year-old child was taken to a local hospital, where she perished. The other three youngsters in the car were hurt.
Police claimed the driver of the Nissan, a 28-year-old man, is the father and stepfather of the children in the other vehicle.
According to Acting Superintendent Paul Austin, the man was in a relationship with the woman who died in the crash.
According to ABC and 9News, two of the injured youngsters were treated for non-life-threatening injuries, and the third is in “critical” condition.
Charges have not yet been filed in the case, but police have detained the cars as part of the investigation. According to ABC, the man was arrested and sent to Townsville, which is around 13 hours from Doomadgee.
Police shared photos of the two destroyed vehicles being transported on trailers, with damaged glass and deployed airbags.
Austin said in a statement that police hope the photographs would “help our investigations into this matter and help our officers better understand what has occurred.”
“We appeal to anyone who may have seen these vehicles in the days or hours before Friday or may have had interactions with their occupants to contact Doomadgee or Mount Isa Police, as well as Crime Stoppers or Policelink,” according to him.
“What occurred on Friday is nothing short of a tragedy, and our officers are dedicated to thoroughly investigating what has occurred, as well as working with the Doomadgee community,” Mr. Austin said.
Austin told ABC that he couldn’t say whether speed, alcohol, drugs, or other factors contributed to the incident, but that forensic crash investigators were on the scene.
The superintendent also told the site that police were looking into domestic violence as part of their probe, but that they were still “looking at everything.”
“As you can imagine, it’s certainly a tragic event,” Austin told reporters. “The investigation must be methodical and comprehensive.”
According to the superintendent, the local community is in sorrow following the “catastrophic crash.”
“Certainly the grief that’s been experienced as a result of this incident has been extreme,” said the man. “We will continue to do whatever we can to support the community through this time.”
If you are experiencing domestic violence, contact the National Domestic Violence Hotline at 1-800-799-7233.
