Truck driver faces court over horror crash that killed freight train drivers near SA-NSW border
A Queensland truck driver accused of causing the death of two men in a horror freight train crash near the border between South Australia and New South Wales has been granted unopposed bail. The court heard the aged pensioner has more than 50-years of truck driving experience but recently has been dealing with serious health issues. It comes as the barrier highway was today re-opened to traffic.
Transcript
00:00 75-year-old Kevin Maxwell Pearson has been charged with two counts of causing death by
00:07 dangerous driving over this collision at a level crossing near Broken Hill, claiming
00:12 the lives of Port Augusta train workers, 48-year-old Mick Warren and 57-year-old Kevin Baker.
00:18 Facing Adelaide Magistrates Court via video link from Port Pirie, the court heard Mr Pearson
00:23 had more than 50 years of truck driving experience but was currently only undertaking casual work.
00:29 The Tullyheads man avoided serious injury in the crash.
00:33 In applying for bail, Mr Pearson's lawyer told the court that the aged pensioner was
00:37 dealing with multiple health issues, including prostate cancer and lung cancer, and that
00:43 he would need to have ongoing communication with his specialist in Queensland.
00:47 He was granted bail, which was not opposed by police, to reside in Port Pirie until his
00:52 next court appearance in April.
00:55 Meanwhile, with the assistance of cranes, police have now reopened the Barrier Highway
00:59 with speed restrictions in place.
01:02 The highway was closed in both directions between Peterborough and the New South Wales
01:06 border for two days, but authorities say there's still a long process ahead to clear the rest
01:12 of the containers, with the full extent of the damage to the road and train line still
01:17 yet to be assessed.
01:19 [ Silence ]