One woman is dead, two men have head injuries and a second woman was trapped in her car after a serious crash that closed the Sydney Harbour Bridge on Thursday morning.
Acting Superintendent Paul Dunstan told reporters early investigations showed a Mitsubishi Mirage travelling north had crossed two lanes of traffic, ending up on the wrong side of the road for a “short time” before slamming into a BMW travelling south.
The cars collided at the Millers Point entrance to the bridge just before 7.15am, with people from both cars injured in the crash and the Mitsubishi driver killed.
Wreckage was strewn across the road and peak-hour traffic was so dense that firefighters were forced to walk to the scene carrying lifesaving equipment.
Supt Dunstan said CCTV footage of the incident was “confronting” to watch.
“It would appear at this stage that the vehicle travelling in the northbound direction has crossed two lanes of traffic and collided with the vehicle travelling south which was in its correct lane,” he said.
“I have seen footage of the incident, and that’s how it appears in the early stages.”
The female driver of the Mitsubishi, who is yet to be formally identified, is believed to be in her mid 30s. Her two passengers, both men believed to be in their 30s, suffered head injuries.
Both have been taken to Royal North Shore Hospital, one reportedly in a critical condition.
The second driver, a woman in her 40s, was trapped in her BMW and later taken to St Vincent’s Hospital with “at least” a broken leg, Supt Dunstan said.
A male passenger believed to be with her was taken to Royal North Shore hospital with minor injuries.
“There was a red car smashed, unbelievably, in the front, and I don't know how both of them – the black car and the red car – got over two different angles. But it was a big hit,” a witness told the Today show.
Supt Dunstan said the lanes of traffic were clearly marked but added the driver who crossed into the wrong lane may have believed she was driving in the right direction.
The bridge was closed for about three hours on Thursday morning but has since reopened. Drivers are advised to avoid the area as traffic is still “extremely heavy”.
Shocking footage from the scene shows emergency workers sorting through the widespread wreckage as peak-hour traffic is banked up for kilometres in both directions.
Inspector Lucky Phrachanh, duty operations manager at NSW Ambulance, said the scene was horrific”.
“Paramedics and emergency services never want to attend these types of accidents,” he said.
“We say this all the time, but please look out for each other on the roads. Driving any motor vehicle can be extremely dangerous.”
Drivers are encouraged to avoid the area, consider working from home or use the Harbour Tunnel instead. Buses heading to the city are now terminating at North Sydney, with passengers encouraged to finish their journey on the train.
There is banked-up traffic on Victoria Road, Burns Bay Road and on the Eastern Distributor.
Bus routes 594, 389, 441, 442, 504 and M50 services are delayed up to 20 minutes due to heavy traffic.
Trains are still running on schedule across the bridge, but passengers are asked to consider delaying their travel if possible to ensure those on the train can socially distance.
Police Association NSW secretary Pat Gooley, who was stuck in the traffic, told 2GB that drivers in the queue needed to stop making U-turns to get themselves out of traffic.
“What we do have is people doing U-turns, and we have emergency services trying to make their way on the other side of the road,” he said.
“People have to stop doing these U-turns, it's too dangerous.”
The incident is before the Crash Investigation Unit. Inquiries continue.
https://news.google.com/__i/rss/rd/articles/CBMifWh0dHBzOi8vd3d3Lm5ld3MuY29tLmF1L25hdGlvbmFsL25zdy1hY3QvbmV3cy9vbmUtZGVhZC1hZnRlci1oYXJib3VyLWJyaWRnZS1jcmFzaC9uZXdzLXN0b3J5L2RiNmQzMzJiYmFkMmRmZjhjNDlhNTljMmY4ZGVhZTE30gF9aHR0cHM6Ly9hbXAubmV3cy5jb20uYXUvbmF0aW9uYWwvbnN3LWFjdC9uZXdzL29uZS1kZWFkLWFmdGVyLWhhcmJvdXItYnJpZGdlLWNyYXNoL25ld3Mtc3RvcnkvZGI2ZDMzMmJiYWQyZGZmOGM0OWE1OWMyZjhkZWFlMTc?oc=5
2020-08-27 03:22:08Z
52781023207463
Bagikan Berita Ini
0 Response to "Police reveal what caused deadly Harbour Bridge crash - NEWS.com.au"
Post a Comment