By Matthew Pearce
The driver of a truck carrying potentially explosive ammonium nitrate was found to be over the limit in a police operation to net drink and drug drivers last week.
Coinciding with National Road Safety Week, which runs from 14 to 21 May, Central Region Police conducted Operation Overtake last week, with road block sites set up for 36 hours in Emerald and Mackay.
Officer in charge of the Rockhampton Highway Patrol Senior Sergeant Ewan Findlater said police conducted 7000 RBTs (random breath tests) across the two sites, which detected seven drink drivers.
Police also conducted 445 drug tests, detecting 12 drug drivers, and issued over 430 infringement notices for various offences, mostly speeding.
The operation involved all the Highway Patrols from the Central Police Region, as well as the Road Policing Task force from Brisbane, general duties police, Tactical Crime Squad police, Stock Squad officers and Queensland Transport.
Snr Sgt Findlater said the driver of a B-double truck carrying ammonium nitrate was one of those detected for drink driving, with the operator of a road train carrying cattle detected for drug driving.
“Seven drink drivers in 7000 intercepts shows the ones doing the wrong thing are certainly in the minority, but those people who do choose to do the wrong thing are the reason we’re out there,” he said.
“The ammonium nitrate case in particular is frightening… even just being there to get them off the road is a good thing.”
Snr Sgt Findlater said Operation Overtake was intended as a “disruption operation” for criminal activities as well as a traffic detection operation, and saw some drug offenders and people on warrants arrested.
He said there had been nine fewer road fatalities in Capricornia Region compared to last year and 19 fewer in the Central Police Region.
There have been 92 people killed on Queensland roads this year, 26 fewer than last year.
“We are moving in the right direction but touch wood we can get it down even further, which is everyone’s aim,” Snr Sgt Findlater said.
Rockhampton Regional Council Infrastructure Councillor Ellen Smith said Road Safety Week and Fatality Free Friday on 26 May encouraged the community to keep road safety front of mind.
“In Australia, 1200 people are killed every year on our roads and another 44,000 are seriously injured… Those are phenomenal figures and we want to reduce that, because every accident leaves some family in trauma and absolute heartache when they lose their loved ones,” she said.
Cr Smith said while she understood long-running roadworks like the recently completed works at Lawrie St, Gracemere, were an inconvenience for drivers, people needed to drive to the conditions and remember the Fatal Five – speeding, drink or drug driving, not wearing a seatbelt, driving tired and distracted driving.
“Driving while tired is a big one and while probably all of us do it to an extent, because we all work hard, a lot of times accidents happen close to home and I’ve seen that happen myself on several occasions,” she said.
“Whether it is a long road trip or you’re just popping down to the shops, always practice road safety to ensure you and your loved ones return home safely.”