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The body of a man involved in a fatal crash was found by police almost 24 hours after his car left the road, marking a tragic conclusion to a horror weekend on Queensland roads.
Police made the grim discovery after being called to investigate an abandoned four-wheel-drive on the Warrego Highway, west of Brisbane, on Sunday.
They believe the driver and sole occupant – a 67-year-old Regency Downs man – crashed his Toyota Landcruiser about 8.30pm on Saturday at Glenore Grove in the Lockyer Valley.
Six people died in five separate crashes over the weekend.
The man managed to get out of the wreckage, but later succumbed to his injuries.
Police searched the surrounding area and found his body a short distance from the vehicle on Sunday night.
Five people were killed in four other fatal crashes over the weekend, with the RACQ predicting that 2025 would be the deadliest year on Queensland roads in more than 15 years.
“Right now, one person dies on our roads almost every day, and speeding remains the leading factor in fatal crashes, contributing to an average of 79 deaths every year,” RACQ general manager of advocacy Josh Cooney said.
On Saturday, a 27-year-old motorbike rider from Gold Coast hinterland township Wonglepong had been travelling along Green Ridge Road in Jimboomba when the bike collided with a station wagon making a right turn.
“Initial investigations indicate the rider was overtaking a number of vehicles on the wrong side of the road,” police said in a statement.
Further north, a 60-year-old man died near Bundaberg when his car rolled off the road while turning onto the Bruce Highway.
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And, a 20-year-old man and a 50-year-old man died when their vehicles collided north of Gympie.
Police said the 20-year-old Kilkivan man had been driving a stolen black MG sedan and “dangerously overtaking vehicles at speed” on Gympie-Curra Road in Chatsworth when his vehicle clipped another car.
The MG sedan then hit a third vehicle – a silver Holden sedan – which flipped both cars. The Holden sedan then caught fire, and the driver, a 50-year-old man local to the area, was killed.
On Sunday, a 19-year-old man died when his campervan crashed off the Kandanga Creek bridge, landing in a ditch, near Gympie. Police found the teenager, from Ningi, dead in his vehicle.
Cooney said road fatalities had been on a decreasing trend five years ago, but had spiked after COVID-19 restrictions eased.
Queensland Police recorded 302 deaths in 2024, and Cooney said the state was likely to exceed that number in 2025.
“We cannot accept the status quo while this road safety crisis worsens,” he said.
“Right now, one person dies on our roads almost every day, and speeding remains the leading factor in fatal crashes.”
Cooney said young men aged between 18 and 24 were the most likely to speed.
The RACQ has called for reforms including more visible police monitoring roads, more point-to-point cameras, and tougher penalties for repeat offenders.
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