A PLEASANT country drive took a turn for the worse as Kevin Murray approached the new Oallen Ford Bridge.
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On Friday afternoon, October 2, the Gungahlin man and partner Tracie Williams travelled to Jervis Bay along Oallen Ford Rd.
The trip is reasonably smooth until they approach the bridge.
“We came around the corner and there was this almighty thud. We hit a massive pothole,” Ms Williams said.
“It knocked us forward. We pulled up on the other side because we thought it had done damage.”
Mr Murray is heard to issue expletives when he hits the pothole. He drives to the other side, where he avoids another one.
Later, in Jervis Bay, the couple discover the vehicle’s radiator bottle was knocked from its hold.
Their trip, filmed with an in car camera on their Jeep Wrangler, is posted on the Oallen Ford Crossing Facebook page.
It occurred two days before an accident that claimed the life of 50-year-old Jerrabomberra man, James Hughes on Sunday, October 4.
Mr Hughes’ partner, Melissa Pearce, claims the same pothole, within Goulburn Mulwaree Council’s boundary, contributed to his death.
Police called the council out to repair the pothole after the accident and Ms Pearce said officers showed her photos of it.
Ms Williams said the pothole played on her mind over that long weekend. She thought she should report it and three days later discovered the Facebook page.
“Things snowballed from there,” she said. “If it (the pothole) can do that to a jeep, God help someone in a small car,” she said.
“I’m not surprised someone can be thrown off a motorbike...It’s a very sad outcome.” The video sparked a flurry of comments.
“I just feel sick watching this footage (but glad there is some recorded video). If it did that to your car, I can only imagine what it did to James’ bike. So f***ing angry, it should never have happened,” Ms Pearce posted in reply on Facebook.
Police are still investigating the crash’s cause. They told the Post officers were mechanically examining the motorbike and a report would be completed for the Coroner in the next two weeks.
The council is not commenting until after the investigation is finished.
Meantime, NSW Roads Minister Duncan Gay was scheduled to open the new bridge next month.
However Mayor Geoff Kettle confirmed he was no longer doing the honours.
“We asked him to open it but something has come up,” he said. Cr Kettle denied the cancellation had anything to do with the fatality.”
Mr Gay’s office declined comment and referred the Post to a Roads and Maritime Service statement, which did not provide detail.
It is not known when the official opening will now take place. Cr Kettle said he was no technical expert and would not say whether he was concerned about the road’s surface.
But he told the Post it was important to get the bridge approaches right.
