Two dead, nine injured in mini-bus crash
Written by admin on June 25, 2024
Two farmworkers have died and nine others are injured after a mini-bus trying to overtake a car crashed into a tree and rolled in Victoria’s far northwest.
The crash happened about 7.45am on Tuesday, about 30kms south of Mildura.
Victoria Police said the bus was travelling south along the Calder Hwy when it rolled onto its side and hit a tree.
Two people died at the scene, while nine others were rushed to hospital.
Mildura highway patrol unit Sergeant Mark McDonald told media two of the nine people are in a critical condition and fighting for their lives.
Sergeant McDonald said it is understood the bus was attempting to overtake another vehicle when the driver lost control and swerved off the road.
He described it as “quite a serious accident”, but said it was “difficult” to see why the crash occurred.
“Obviously the weather’s fine, the road condition appears to be quite good, there’s no indication there were any animals involved so at this stage it’ll form part of the investigation,” Sergeant McDonald said.
“Obviously we’ll be speaking to the passengers and hopefully the driver, if he recovers well enough for us to speak to him, to try and determine exactly what happened.”
It is not yet known if the driver or passengers were wearing seatbelts.
The male driver has also been taken to hospital with critical injuries.
Three passengers suffered serious injuries, and four other passengers were taken to hospital for observation.
A stretch of the Calder Highway, between roads which are 15kms apart, are expected to be closed for several hours.
“The circumstances surrounding the collision are yet to be established and the investigation remains ongoing,” police say in the statement.
The Major Crash Investigation Unit is enroute to the scene, with Sergeant McDonald saying it is too early to determine whether speed, driver fatique or alcohol played a factor in the incident.
The passengers are understood to be farmworkers from overseas.
Anyone with dashcam footage is urged to contact Crime Stoppers.
More than 130 people have died on Victorian roads so far in 2024.
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