A retired police officer with mental health problems stopped his black Audi at the entrance to a busy tunnel, revved the engine and accelerated to 200 km/hour just seconds before crashing into the back of a car and killing a young woman.
Former police officer Bruce Daley, 56, died when he crashed into a silver sedan, which then crashed into a truck in the Legacy Way tunnel in Mt Coot-Tha on Wednesday.
Young nurse Lily Galbraith, 24, who was a passenger in the silver sedan, died while the driver, Emma McLean, 23, was left in critical condition.
Witnesses to the terrible accident remember how the Audi stopped at the entrance to the tunnel around 3:10 p.m., forcing other drivers to surround it.
‘[The driver] “I didn’t indicate or put any dangers… I indicated around him and moved on… some people whistled at him,” said a witness. courier mail.
“I drove by slowly… he was sitting there in the car.”
The witness had called his brother while returning home from work.
“This car was flying, it went by me and my brother could hear it through the speakerphone… my car shook,” he said.
‘About 80 meters in front of me is where the impact occurred. I told my brother ‘I have to get off the phone’ and jumped.
“The only thing you could see was smoke and debris everywhere.”
Former police officer Bruce Daley (pictured) also died in the horrific crash.
Lily Galbraith (left) died after a former police officer driving an Audi convertible crashed into the back of a car she was traveling in. Her friend Emma McLean (right) is in critical condition.
Daley was heading north through the tunnel in a black Audi S3 (pictured) which witnesses said was traveling at speeds of up to 200 km/h.
The witness said he and another man examined Mr Daley, who had a “minimal pulse” and he was later pronounced dead at the scene.
Daley retired from the Queensland Police in 2014.
He had mentioned his mental health problems on social media, including references to loneliness and suicide.
Acting Detective Inspector Chris Hansel told a news conference that speed would be the focus of the investigation, which was not criminal.
“This will be a very protracted matter and all elements and angles of this incident will be thoroughly investigated,” he said.
“This includes looking at our five fatal factors, such as any distraction, drunk driving, speeding, fatigue or reckless behavior that was present before or during the incident.”
Inspector Hansel would not comment on whether the former police officer’s mental state would influence the investigation, which is expected to last several months.
‘I cannot comment on exact scenarios at this time. As you can see, it is a very complex investigation, a very conflictive scene that was experienced by our first responders and the general public,” he said.
“It would once again be irresponsible of me to propose a specific scenario without a full investigation having been conducted.”
Ms Galbraith, from Darwin, and Ms McLean, from Adelaide, were in Brisbane to attend a wedding when their lives were turned upside down by the accident.
Daley (pictured) is understood to have left Queensland Police in 2014.
The former police officer poses in his black Audi convertible in November 2016.
Ms McLean remains in a critical condition at the Royal Brisbane and Women’s Hospital after undergoing surgery on Wednesday night.
She was engaged to her boyfriend of five years just a few weeks ago.
Mrs Galbraith, who sadly died as a result of the accident, worked as a nurse.
The driver of the truck was taken to the hospital with non-life-threatening injuries.
The collision closed Brisbane’s main tunnel and inbound and outbound lanes were closed for more than two hours during rush hour.
Police want to speak to anyone who saw the black Audi S3 before the crash and anyone who has information for investigators.