A female driver escaped with just cuts and abrasions from this accident near Yarra Junction last Wednesday.By Monique Ebrington
WARBURTON Emergency Services workers have been kept busy during the last week with the long weekend and strong weather conditions.
Police are praising the good behaviour of locals and visitors to the area over the Easter long weekend.
Police were busy targeting speed, drink/drug driving, fatigue and drivers using mobile phones or failing to wear seatbelts.
There were only three minor incidents over the holiday period.
A 39-year-old motorcycle rider was transported to hospital after a head-on collision near Powelltown on Monday 13 April.
A five car pile-up and single vehicle motorcycle incident also occurred over the Easter long weekend, with no-one requiring transport to hospital.
Victoria Police invested 750 man hours and 154 members in Region 4, which covers Yarra Ranges, as part of the AEGIS IV blitz over Easter.
Among more than 370 offences recorded were 20 for failing to wear a seatbelt, 16 for mobile phone use and 199 speeding offences.
In one of the worst instances a 23-year-old Glen Waverley man was clocked by Yarra Ranges Traffic Management Unit at 135 kilometres over the limit on the Maroondah Highway between St Huberts Road and Maddens Lane.
Police say the man was riding a 2000 Yamaha motorbike at 235 kilometres an hour in the 100 kilometre zone when he was intercepted at 10.20am.
Leading Senior Constable Ian Whitehall from the Yarra Ranges TMU pulled the motorcyclist over and later impounded his motorbike under hoon legislation powers.
The motorcyclist has also been summonsed to appear at the Ringwood Magistrates’ Court at a date to be fixed.
Heavy rain and strong winds on Tuesday 14 April kept the Upper Yarra State Emergency Service busy as they responded to numerous calls of fallen branches due to the extreme weather conditions.
Upper Yarra SES Controller Steve Green said that their call outs were spread across the day with fallen branches causing a hazard to roads and a residential property.
The SES responded to a call made by a Launching Place resident at 10.15am after a tree fell across their driveway. The SES were also required to remove fallen trees from Hill Road, Warburton at 8.42am and Hooks Road, Warburton at 11.30am on the Tuesday.
Mr Green warned that in extreme conditions residents should be aware of large trees, big branches and windy weather.
A driver has made a lucky escape after she flipped her vehicle along the Warburton Highway on Wednesday 15 April at 2.15pm.
Two Yarra Junction paramedics attended the scene and while the woman suffered cuts and abrasions she did not require transport to hospital.
