Tragic death: The van Seymour baker Max Loweke was driving when he drove into floodwaters in 2016.
Photo by
Alison O'Connor
A Coroner has found the death of Seymour baker Max Loweke in floodwaters in 2016 could have been prevented if a council worker hadn’t fallen asleep before sending someone to close Delatite Rd, and police and emergency services had followed up requests to close the road.
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The Victorian Coroner’s Court last week released the findings into the death of Mr Loweke in early hours of January 4, 2016.
The 63-year-old Mr Loweke drove into floodwaters less than a kilometre from his home just before 2am.
SES volunteers made desperate attempts to pull Mr Loweke from the van after it had been swept off the road, risking their own safety, but they were unable to rescue him.
He ploughed into the floodwaters as he drove to work on January 4, 2016, with signs which could have warned him of the dangerous flooding locked and folded up on the ground next to the road.
Recovery: The scene of the drowning in 2016.
Photo by
Alison O'Connor
Multiple requests were made to Mitchell Shire Council for someone to unlock the sign and close the road.
Coroner Darren Bracken said the fact the council worker fell asleep “without completely dealing with the request for assistance is seriously regrettable”.
He also said calls to council from police and SES seeking resources and road closures “without at least monitoring that anticipated resources were actually provided was inadequate”.
The report found the road was “completely underwater” by 8.30pm on January 3.
Witness Michael Stead said council normally erected signs which meant drivers “physically had to get out of your car and move the signs to get past”.
Another witness, Madalin Duna, said the water flowing over the ford was like “glass” and it was impossible to tell the difference between water and asphalt.
She called Triple Zero at about 10.30pm on January 3 and told the operator the road was flooded and offered to sit in her car and block off the road until emergency services arrived.
Ms Duna was told that there was no need.
About 10.30pm, SES volunteers were stopped by water across the ford, which was estimated at 1.8m deep.
Drowning death: The water was over 1.5m high when Max Loweke drove into the ford in Seymour in 2016.
Photo by
Alison O'Connor
The report found the signs warning of floodwaters were folded up and locked, and that “the amount of water flowing over the ford was a serious danger to road users”.
Police and SES attended the ford a number of times between 10.30pm and 1am, phoning Triple Zero in order to get council workers to attend.
A council worker was told signage had been requested at 10.30pm, and when given the name of the person to call went to put her son to sleep before she herself also fell asleep without sending anyone to the ford.
She woke up about 2am and found she hadn’t received any more calls.
“Rightly or wrongly, I assumed that it mustn’t have been an emergency or anything urgent as no-one had followed up requesting the signs,” she told the coroner.
Mr Loweke drove into the ford at 1.55am, three and a half hours after the first call to council, nearly two hours after the second call and 45 minutes after police were last at the ford.
Mr Bracken said if the road had been closed, or even signs put up after 10.30pm on January 3, Mr Loweke’s death could have been prevented.
Still flowing: The raging torrent the next morning.
Photo by
Alison O'Connor
“Mr Loweke’s death was a tragedy that with the considerable benefit conferred by hindsight may have been prevented at a number of points.
“Had police and SES staff assiduously pursued blocking Delatite Rd between Wimble St and the ford it is at least likely that it would have been achieved before Mr Loweke drove into the ford and his death there-by prevented.”
Mitchell Shire Council has since changed the way it manages staff in out-of-hours responses, and automatic water level detectors have since been installed at the ford to notify police and SES when flooding becomes too deep.
The coroner recommended emergency services conduct more mock emergencies in regional areas and called for people appointed to command positions in emergency events undergo training.
