De-a-dly Seconds Before Police Passed: Critical Investigation Begins After Driver’s Fa-t-al Crash Near Appin
A driver has died on Sydney’s south-west fringe after swerving into an oncoming cement truck just meters ahead of two police cars that were rushing to a domestic violence emergency.
Authorities said shortly after 10am on Wednesday, two police cars with lights and sirens on were heading to an urgent and unrelated job and found themselves driving about 50 metres behind a hatchback on Appin Road.
The man, who is yet to be formally identified, died at the scene. 9News
Assistant Commissioner Brett McFadden said the hatchback swerved onto the wrong side of the road into the path of an oncoming cement truck, leading to a significant crash.
“Police vehicles stopped [and] rendered assistance where possible to the driver of the cement truck,” McFadden said.
He confirmed that the driver of the hatchback, who is believed to be a 39-year-old man, died at the scene.
McFadden said responding police were en route to a domestic situation where a man was allegedly armed with a knife.
The police cars had their lights and sirens on “for an extended period of time” .
McFadden said that, after he saw the crash footage, it did not appear as if the driver panicked because of the two trailing police cars.
“There’s a clear path he has taken into the front of a cement truck, the circumstances to why that path was taken is subject to our investigation,” he said.
The driver of the cement truck sustained minor injuries and shock.
He has since been taken to hospital for mandatory testing and treatment of his injuries.
A critical incident has now been declared.
Police confirmed that the driver of the car who swerved into oncoming traffic was not involved in any police investigation.
Assistant Commissioner Brett McFadden commended the response of officers. 9News
“In the normal course of business, [the police cars] would have safely negotiated around that vehicle and continued on their way to the priority job,” McFadden said.
He commended the response of the officers involved following the “tragic set of circumstances” they were confronted with while on their way to an alleged violent domestic violence incident.
“I support my police officers wholeheartedly,” McFadden said.
“They have successfully pivoted straight away and put their attention where it needed to be, to the welfare of those involved in that crash.
“They did a great job.”
McFadden said the alleged domestic violence incident the officers were responding to has been “resolved”.
