A LATE-night joyride gone wrong has left two young people fighting for their life after a horrific crash in Renmark involving a teenager driver.
South Australia police (SAPOL) were called to Renmark Avenue just before 2.30am on Monday when a Ford sedan collided with a light pole before flipping and coming to rest in front of the Renmark Harvest Labour.
The vehicle had been allegedly stolen from another Renmark property only a short time before the incident.
Renmark Metropolitan Fire Service (MFS) firefighter Ashley Hendry said all occupants were out of the vehicle upon MFS’s arrival, with one in an unconscious state.
He said MFS crews assisted SAAS with patient care and equipment retrieval until the driver and passengers were transferred to hospital.
The 16-year-old male driver from Murray Bridge and the 24-year-old male rear passenger from Berri sustained serious injuries and were airlifted to the Royal Adelaide Hospital later that day.
The front passenger, an 18-year-old from Berri, only suffered minor injuries and was taken to the Riverland General Hospital.
He was later arrested and charged with illegal use of the car, and bailed to appear in Berri Magistrates Court on September 1.
SAPOL Inspector Peter Kennedy said the incident was “one of the worst he had ever seen”, and it was “surprising, although not uncommon”, that the front passenger escaped with minor injuries.
“The damage to the vehicle is so extensive it’s clear it is a very bad accident,” he said.
“Young drivers can make mistakes when they are first starting to learn to drive, and sometimes those mistakes result in minor outcomes and sometimes they result in devastating outcomes.
“This is obviously at the top end of the scale in relation to the outcomes that happen.”
Another spokesperson from SAPOL said investigations into the cause of the incident were ongoing, and as part of that, blood work would be taken to determine the occupants’ blood alcohol level at the time of the crash.
Mr Hendry said crew members who were on scene would be given a wellbeing check at training that night given the nature of the incident.
Similarly, Mr Kennedy said SAPOL had systems and processes in place for employees to seek support, and for others to monitor those employees’ wellbeing closely both from in town and local management.
The Royal Adelaide Hospital could not provide an update on the two critically-injured patients’ conditions without parental consent.