‘Horrific scenes’: Man killed in crash
Residents woken to fiery nightmare on local street
A MAN was killed in a fiery crash at Hermit Park when his car slammed into a tree and caught alight.
Police were called to Queens Rd, near Corcoran Park, about 1am to reports a small white hatchback had hit a tree and burst into flames.
The driver, a man, and sole occupant of the car died at the scene.
District duty officer Senior Sergeant Brett Smith said the car was engulfed in flames when police arrived.
“It was quite a horrific scene,” Sergeant Smith said.
Due to the nature of the man’s injuries, police are yet to formally identify the victim but can confirm he is a male.
Townsville District Acting Chief Superintendent Chris Lawson said police are still determining how the crash happened.
“At this stage it’s too early to speculate, the Forensic Crash Unit is actively investigating the cause of the crash so at this point in time we haven’t been able to establish exactly what it is,” Superintendent Lawson said.
The car wreck was completely charred on Tuesday morning, with the bonnet and engine totally incinerated. The fire from the vehicle also spread to a nearby tree, but was quickly put out by fire crews.
Neighbours who lived near the scene were awake when the crash happened and made the initial call to police.
One of the residents at the home, who did not wish to be named, said she had just gone to bed and put her phone down when she heard the crash, and the immediate “whoosh” sound of the car catching fire.
Looking from her balcony, the sedan was already completely engulfed in raging flames just moments later.
The residents said they heard no lead up to the impact, including no brakes, hooning or revving of an engine.
When asked whether the driver may have been chasing a stolen car, Superintendent Lawson said “that’s not something I’ve heard”.
“As the investigation progresses all those little intricacies will be gone through and worked out exactly what has occurred,” he said.
The road was closed until about 4.30am on Tuesday.
The Forensic Crash Unit are investigating.