Four teens die in horror Townsville car accident

FOUR teenagers are dead after the stolen car they were in crashed, destroying the vehicle, in an early morning crash in Townsville yesterday.

A 14-year-old boy was driving the Kia Sorrento sedan, but he survived the impact with minor injuries.

He will be interviewed by police.

Although police spotted the car before the crash, they had not been pursuing it.

“At no stage did the police pursue that vehicle or try to intercept that vehicle,” Superintendent Assistant District Officer Glen Pointing said.

Two girls and two boys, believed to be aged between 14 and 18, died at the scene on the corner of Duckworth St and Bayswater Rd at Garbutt.

The driver of the vehicle was taken to Townsville University Hospital in a stable condition.

“We will interact with the families and get to the bottom of how this tragic event occurred,” Mr Pointing said.

There were reports that two stolen cars were being driven dangerously in the area but police had not established if they had been travelling together when the accident occurred, he said.

Mr Pointing said the scene was confronting.

“We don’t like going to these incidents. It’s a tragedy for the children involved and is a tragedy for their families,” he said.

“(It) is also confronting to first responders who attend these incidents, whether they be police, fire, ambulance, everyone involved.”

Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk said the accident was “tragic beyond words”.

“This is horrific,” she said. “Four young people have lost their lives and there are four families that will be grieving.”

The police forensic crash unit investigations are continuing. Ethical Standards Command will overview the investigation as a matter of course.