March 21, 2017
An excavator driver suffered serious injuries when his 23.5 tonne machine plunged seven metres through a derelict wooden bridge near Brooklands on Tuesday afternoon, landing upside down in Barker Creek.
The horrific incident occurred about lunchtime on Goodger Gully Road (formerly known as Barker Creek Kunioon Road).
Emergency crews received a Triple 0 call at 12:38pm and police, ambulance and fire crews were quickly on the scene.
Traffic was blocked on the Nanango-Brooklands Road near the accident site to allow an RACQ LifeFlight helicopter to land.
The driver, a man believed to be in his 60s, worked for a demolition company contracted by the South Burnett Regional Council to demolish the bridge, which has been closed for a number of years.
He was quickly removed from the cabin of his upturned vehicle and lifted into a nearby ambulance by emergency personnel.
His two workmates, who saw the machine topple as the bridge’s wooden decking gave way, were shaken but unhurt.
Witnesses said the driver was conscious and talking but it was feared he may have sustained internal injuries.
The LifeFlight helicopter arrived on the scene at 1:40pm.
The driver was airlifted in a serious condition to Royal Brisbane Hospital about 2:30pm.
QFES Inspector Mark Long said the one lucky feature of the accident was that the stretch of Barker Creek spanned by the bridge was largely dry.
Had it been flowing, the consequences of the incident could have been much more severe.
The wooden bridge, which formerly connected Goodger Gully Road to the Nanango Brooklands Road, was closed by the South Burnett Regional Council almost a decade ago because it was structurally unsound.
Earlier this year, Council decided to demolish it.
southburnett.com.au understands they engaged an outside company, AFP Demolitions, to carry out the work because it had experience in demolishing timber bridges.
Tuesday was the company’s first day on the job.
Officers from Workplace Health and Safety, based on the Sunshine Coast, will now undertake an official investigation into the incident.
Council is also expected to carry out its own investigation.
(Photo: Graeme Dodds)
(Photo: Graeme Dodds)
(Photo: RACQ LifeLight)
