The potential perils of driving big rigs – or indeed of driving anything at all – on Australia’s ever more busy highways and byways has been highlighted once again by another accident involving a caravan.
The van involved flipped and was torn in two after it was sideswiped by a car on the Pacific Highway south of Woolgoolga on the New South Wales Mid North Coast a couple of days ago.
The force of the impact apparently caused the caravan to overturn and smash on the roadway and buckle its axles.
Police are investigating why a north-bound Mitsubishi Magna sedan veered onto the opposite side of the road and into the side of the caravan. An elderly driver was cut from the wreckage of the Mitsubishi and rushed to hospital in a serious but stable condition. Two passengers in the same car were treated by paramedics and assessed for injuries in hospital.
The two occupants of the south-bound Nissan Pathfinder that was towing the caravan were apparently visibly shaken and treated for shock at the accident site. It was believed they were travelling south, intending to spend the night at a van park in Nambucca Heads.
The accident caused the closure of the highway for about two hours.
The crash happened on a tight section, where road works are under way as part of the Sapphire to Woolgoolga Pacific Highway upgrade.
It’s a frightening tale that, bad as it is, could easily have been even worse. It is a reminder to us all that things can change in the blink of an eye. It is a reminder also, not only that we should always take extra care on the roads, but that we should treasure every moment of our wonderful lives as grey nomads. We are very, very lucky.
