THE three vehicle crash which left a man dead near Nelson on Monday is still under police investigation.
The high speed collision – which included a vehicle towing a sprint car – left seven people injured and has been handed over to the Victorian Police’s major collision investigation unit.
The identity of the elderly man killed in the crash is still unknown as investigators try to piece together how the fatal incident occurred at around 3pm on the Portland-Nelson Road, 5km east of Nelson.
Portland highway patrol Acting Sergeant Nathan Cashion said yesterday a vehicle towing a trailer was travelling west and two other vehicles were travelling east when the crash took place.
“It occurred in a 100kph zone so you are looking at a very high impact collision,” Sgt Cashion said.
“The collision is still under investigation, but we can confirm there was one deceased male and another woman flown to Melbourne with serious injuries.”
Three other people were transported to the Mount Gambier Hospital and a further three occupants were taken to Portland District Health.
A Holden Colarado, Nissan Patrol and Toyota Rav 4 were towed from the scene following investigation of the crash site.
Police were on the scene until around 4.30am yesterday and the road was only opened to traffic soon afterwards.
Ambulance services from Victoria and South Australia attended the scene on Monday along with Country Fire Authority, State Emergency Service and the Country Fire Service.
A helicopter from Warrnambool also attended to fly the woman to Melbourne.
With the crash taking the Victorian road toll from to 13 compared to 12 at the same time last year, Sgt Cashion said it was important for the community to take care on the roads.
“In Victoria we all have a focus on getting our road toll towards zero,” he said.
“There are a lot of factors as to why a collision takes place, but people need to remember it is a privilege to have a licence and to honour that privilege by taking care on the road.”
