March 15, 2013
Police keep on saying it … if it’s flooded, forget it! And there’s a good reason why … six people have been killed on Queensland roads since the start of the year after they drove on flooded roads.
As at midnight on March 13, the State’s road toll stood at 65 deaths, 16 more than for the same time last year, and 21 higher than for the same time in 2010, the year in which the least number of people were killed on Queensland roads since accurate counting of road deaths began in 1952.
Acting Chief Superintendent Morrow said that of the 65 fatalities, police suspect that a combination of alcohol and speed played a large part in least 19 of the deaths.
Eight people who died appeared not to have been wearing a seatbelt.
Sixteen people were killed when the vehicle they were travelling in, or the vehicle that collided with them, lost control.
Of the 65 people killed on the road this year, three were children under nine, the oldest person was 90, with the average age being 38. Motorcycle riders accounted for 12 of the fatalities.
“As a community, we should be horrified by these statistics,” Acting Chief Superintendent Morrow said.
“(Almost) one person every day has been killed on our roads so far this year, and hundreds have been injured.”
