Vehicle fatalities involving collisions with kangaroos

Abstract

A search was undertaken of the Forensic Science South Australia (FSSA), Australia, autopsy database over a 20-year period from 2000 to 2019 for all cases where vehicle crashes had involved kangaroos. There were six cases with an age range of 18–62 years (M=42 years) and a male-to-female ratio of 5:1. There were three crashes involving motor vehicles and three involving motorcycles. The three motor-vehicle crashes were initiated by impact with a kangaroo followed by a head-on crash with a truck (n=1) and a tree (n=2). In two of the motorcycle crashes, the cycle hit a kangaroo, resulting in the rider being unseated. In the third case, following impact with the animal, the cyclist hit a tree. In one of the latter cases, the only evidence of impact with a kangaroo was fur found by investigating officers adherent to the front-right indicator. Lethal injuries were located in the chest in six cases, the cranio-cervical region in five cases and the abdomen in three cases. Thus, in the majority of cases (n=5), death was due to multiple injuries. In the remaining case, death was caused by blunt chest trauma. This study shows that kangaroo–vehicle impacts may result in very significant blunt-force trauma. Motorcycle riders are particularly vulnerable. It may be only by careful examination of the vehicle/motorcycle for animal residues that the nature of the incident will be clarified.