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Speaker 1: Well, this week is Road Safety Week. Territorians are being

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Speaker 1: urged to drive like their lives are worth living and

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Speaker 1: make the roads safer for all. We know that National

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Speaker 1: Road Safety Week runs from yes, well Sunday, I should

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Speaker 1: say May eleven until Monday, or until Sunday May eighteen,

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Speaker 1: But unfortunately we've not started the week overly. Well, it

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Speaker 1: was a shocking weekend on our roads with a truck

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Speaker 1: driver killed after trying to dodge a bull at Emerald

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Speaker 1: Springs and a hit and run at Mandora which left

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Speaker 1: a man with serious leg injuries. Now, sadly this year

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Speaker 1: eleven people have lost their lives on our roads. And

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Speaker 1: joining me in the studio right now as Superintendent Rick mcgree,

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Speaker 1: Good morning to you.

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Speaker 2: Rick, morning Katie, how are you? Yeah?

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Speaker 1: Really good? Now, first off, tell us a little bit

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Speaker 1: more about the fatal crash at Emerald Springs. Yeah.

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Speaker 2: So, as you said, unfortunately a fifty eight year old

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Speaker 2: mail has lost his life there just north of Emerald Springs. Yeah.

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Speaker 2: So initial circumstances look like that he's collided with a

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Speaker 2: bull on the road and then subsequently after that he's

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Speaker 2: exited the road and hit a tree and unfortunately lost

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Speaker 2: his life. So yeah, I mean.

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Speaker 1: It sounds terrible obviously, Like you've said, there're those investigations

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Speaker 1: suggesting he tried to swerve to avoid hitting at or

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Speaker 1: has collided with it ended up costing him his life.

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Speaker 1: I mean, you feel like you feel for anybody and

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Speaker 1: any family obviously impacted by this kind of road trauma.

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Speaker 1: But you think, oh, when you're in a truck, you'd

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Speaker 1: feel like you've got a little bit more safety, I

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Speaker 1: would assume given the fact that they so well lit up.

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Speaker 1: You know, they are quite large. But when you've got

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Speaker 1: wildlife or when you've got stock like that on the road,

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Speaker 1: it's a huge makes a huge impact.

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Speaker 2: It really doesn't. And it's just the saddest reminder that

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Speaker 2: you know, people do need to drive to the conditions

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Speaker 2: and you know, whilst the speed limit might say what

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Speaker 2: it says, if the conditions, you know, don't support that,

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Speaker 2: then you know, drive to those conditions.

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Speaker 1: And yeah, what I mean is there what is the

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Speaker 1: message TODs when it comes to some of those large

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Speaker 1: animals and obstacles on our roads. We were talking off

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Speaker 1: air and I was saying, you know, near Mount iSER

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Speaker 1: where I grew up, there was so many kangaroos and

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Speaker 1: things on the roads at all times, but up here

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Speaker 1: in the top end, same sort of scenario.

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Speaker 2: Yeah, well, I suppose that the biggest advice, and you know,

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Speaker 2: it's very similar to fatigue, is to just plan your journeys.

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Speaker 2: So if you can plan your journeys at times where

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Speaker 2: you're less likely to see those animals on the road,

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Speaker 2: or you know, there would be less animals on the

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Speaker 2: road during the day generally, and you'll be able to

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Speaker 2: see them a little bit easier. So if you can,

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Speaker 2: that's the biggest advice, and the same works for fatigue

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Speaker 2: in that space as well. Don't try and drive when

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Speaker 2: you're not at the best.

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Speaker 1: Ye, now we know man's also being charged over a

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Speaker 1: separate incident to hit and run at Mandora. What unfolded

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Speaker 1: over there?

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Speaker 2: Yeah, so we were alerted to an incident out there

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Speaker 2: where a man had been hit by a vehicle and

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Speaker 2: really unfortunately the driver of that vehicle's fled the scene

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Speaker 2: and didn't render any assistance. So police did a really

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Speaker 2: really good job out that way, and they managed to

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Speaker 2: identify the driver and arrest him later on.

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Speaker 1: How's that victim doing.

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Speaker 2: Yeah, my understanding is that he had to be carefulated

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Speaker 2: from out at Mandora there into de da On for

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Speaker 2: further treatment. So, yeah, the injuries are quite serious.

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Speaker 1: I'm led to believe, and I know Mandora is quite

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Speaker 1: a small sort of place with the victim and the

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Speaker 1: driver known to each other, or don't I.

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Speaker 2: At this stage, I don't know that it's you know,

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Speaker 2: it's obviously still on an investigation. So some charges have

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Speaker 2: been laid and it looks like alcohol was a factor

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Speaker 2: in that and also just driver behavior, so they're very

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Speaker 2: serious offenses.

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Speaker 1: So so Rick, I know that Northern Territory Police, particularly

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Speaker 1: those working in the Road Safety Division, you were out

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Speaker 1: at different incidents all the time. What is your message

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Speaker 1: to Territorians during National Road Safety Week? I know we've

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Speaker 1: had some terrible situations on our roads, even yesterday speaking

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Speaker 1: to Saint John, So many incidents of is injury on

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Speaker 1: our roads.

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Speaker 2: Yeah, the biggest device, It just comes down to driver attitude.

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Speaker 2: So you can be the greatest driver in the world,

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Speaker 2: but if your attitude's poor, then that's going to result

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Speaker 2: in these outcomes. So we have the fatal five and

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Speaker 2: like I talk about this incident just before, that's very

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Speaker 2: easily preventable had that driver made better decisions, particularly around

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Speaker 2: alcohol use, so be aware of the fatal five, be

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Speaker 2: aware of driving under the influence, speeding, not wearing seat belts,

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Speaker 2: fatigue and distraction. And if you can make better choices

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Speaker 2: in relation to those causal factors, then we will see

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Speaker 2: better outcomes.

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Speaker 1: And Rick, are there any community events planned around the

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Speaker 1: National Road Safety Week this week?

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Speaker 2: Yes, so our team's going to be doing a lot

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Speaker 2: of high visibility policing, so you'll see our teams out

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Speaker 2: like you normally will out doing lots of RBTs, breath testing,

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Speaker 2: drug testing and the like. And I think you'll also

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Speaker 2: see a pop up in relation to the fatal five

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Speaker 2: down at the waterfront this Saturday morning.

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Speaker 1: Well, Superintendent Rick mcgree, it is always good to catch

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Speaker 1: up with you. Really appreciate your time. Thank you as

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Speaker 1: always for joining us.

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Speaker 2: Thank you, thank you,