Emergency service workers converge on the crash site near Cudgee.
A MAN was killed in a two-vehicle accident last night near the Cudgee turn-off, about 15 kilometres east of Warrnambool.
Police, ambulance and emergency service officers battled rain and wind at the scene of the crash between a 12-metre bus that was used as a motor home and a small hatchback sedan.
A witness at the crash told The Standard that the sedan’s roof was ripped off in the shocking crash.
SES south-west regional duty officer Geoff Dunmore described it as “a fairly horrific accident”.
The occupants of the bus, a man and woman in their 40s, were taken to Warrnambool Base Hospital where the man was treated for chest pains.
The woman was uninjured, Ambulance Victoria spokesman John Mullen said.
The bus and the hatchback collided about 6.38pm, less than a kilometre from the corner of Dwarroon Road and Princes Highway.
The crash blocked the highway in both directions until early this morning as police investigators completed their work.
Police directed Terang-bound traffic into Cudgee.
Police media officer Leonie Johnson urged anyone who saw the accident to contact them.
“The male driver of the car, and lone occupant, was declared deceased at the scene,” she said in a media release.
“Police urge anyone that may have witnessed the collision to contact Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000 or visit www.crimestoppers.com.au”
Mr Dunmore said about 15 SES members attended the accident, where they helped preserve the crash scene from the rain for police investigators.
He said heavy haulage was used to remove the bus, which came to rest in a right-hand table drain facing west.
Mr Dunmore said the accident was a reminder to take care on the roads.
“It’s a reminder to make sure people slow down in the wet and make sure they take a break when travelling long distances,” Mr Dunmore said.
“We want people to arrive home safe and alive.”
The Standard has been running the Talk The Toll Down campaign since October last year. In that period 13 people have died, compared with nine in the same period last year. Last night’s death takes the state’s road toll to 170, compared with 192 last year.