Police are issuing a timely reminder to motorists visiting the Noosa North Shore area of the hazards of driving on beaches following a single vehicle rollover at Teewah Beach this morning (January 4) which saw four teens hospitalised.
Around 2.30am police and emergency services were called to Teewah Beach, near the camping area at Double Island Point (camping zone 3), following a single vehicle rollover.
The dual cab utility, containing seven males aged 18 and 17 from Brisbane, rolled with two passengers airlifted to hospital with serious head, chest and back injuries and two other passengers transported to hospital with serious injuries.
Three other occupants were lucky to walk away with minor injuries.
The 17-year-old driver, from Bridgeman Downs, was issued with a Notice To Appear for alleged low range drink driving. Investigations by the Forensic Crash Unit are continuing.
Inspector Brad Inskip, Gympie Patrol Group, said police will continue to focus on the Noosa North Shore area and local beaches, such as Teewah and Rainbow, during the popular holiday period.
"Today's crash is a reminder that driving on beaches can be hazardous, can be dangerous. The surfaces are different from what most of us are used to and driver's need to take extra care."
"We also remind motorists that the same road rules apply when driving on a beach, or in national parks, as they do when driving on any street in Queensland."
Inspector Inskip said motorists can expect to see police conducting enforcement operations throughout January.
"So far over the Christmas New Year holiday period* police from Gympie and the Sunshine Coast conducting traffic enforcement operations in the Noosa North Shore and surrounds have conducted more than 5,500 random breath tests and 72 random drug tests."
"Five drink drivers and one drug driver were detected. One-hundred and thirty-seven speeding tickets issued, along with 68 defective vehicle infringements and 54 people failing to wear seatbelts."
Inspector Inskip said it was disappointing the number of people flaunting the road rules and highlighted the number of motorists detected speeding and those failing to wear seatbelts, two dangerous driving behaviours.
"You might be on holidays. You might be enjoying some of the best pristine ocean and parkland environments in the world but you can still die in a road crash by making poor choices, not driving to the conditions, not appreciating the limitations of your driving skills or acknowledging that sand driving is not the same as highway driving."
After 68 defective vehicle infringement notices were issued police are also reminding motorists that vehicles driven 'off-road' on our beaches and parks, must also be roadworthy.
"Vehicle standards are safety standards. Defective or unroadworthy vehicles will be intercepted and drivers issued with infringement notices and we make no apology for that. Safety should be every motorists priority every time they get behind the wheel, regardless of their location."
Tips and information on sand driving
*figures from December 1 to January 4 inclusive
Police conducting patrols on the Leisha Track at Cooloola on December 16 issued two infringement notices to a 25-year-old Brisbane man.
