Kowanyama funeral crash victims still in hospital

Eight people remain in hospital and others are receiving psychiatric help more than a week after a deadly car crash at a funeral viewing in far north Queensland.

The emergency department entrance of Cairns Hospital (AAP)

The emergency department entrance of Cairns Hospital (AAP) Source: AAP

A 48-year-old woman was killed when a vehicle went through a house in Kowanyama on October 7, as a group of people were mourning a deceased woman.

Twenty-six people were injured in the crash, which has devastated the tight-knit Indigenous community.

Eight of the victims remained at hospitals in Cairns and Townsville on Monday, including a 56 -year-old woman in a serious, but stable condition.

Others are being treated in Kowanyama, with extra health resources deployed to the remote township on the western side of Cape York.

Two psychiatrists, a mental health nurse and a team of counsellors and social workers are aiding those impacted by the tragedy.

Two of four additional police officers sent to the town remain there, although there have been no reports of unrest.
It's alleged Garry Paul Hudson, 55, rammed a council-owned vehicle into the house packed with mourners gathered to honour his former partner after she died from cancer.

Hudson is facing one charge of murder and 26 counts of attempted murder over the incident, which involved many people from the same family group.

Relative and Kowanyama-born Indigenous advocate Tania Major said the community was banding together as it grieved.
"It’s great you've got services there ... but people are still in shock".
However, Ms Major said the incident highlighted the need for federal and state governments to review health services in the community.


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Source: AAP


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