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Mother's Plea: 7 Years Since Son's Death, Road Hazard Unfixed
26 Dec
Summary
- A mother urges action on a deadly road hazard seven years after her son's fatal crash.
- Loose stones from an unsealed side track remain a hazard on Mountain Highway.
- She seeks a simple 10m road seal to prevent further tragedies.
Nearly seven years after her youngest son Michael's tragic death, a mother is calling for urgent safety upgrades on a notorious Melbourne mountain road. Michael Oates, 28, died in 2018 on Mountain Highway in Victoria's Dandenong Ranges when his motorbike hit loose stones on a blind bend. These stones, washed onto the bitumen from an unsealed side track, continue to pose a significant risk to other riders.
Moira Oates, Michael's mother, is not seeking financial compensation but a straightforward solution: sealing a 10-meter section of the hazardous track. She feels the ongoing inaction by authorities indicates a lack of care for her son's death and the potential risks to others. The hazard, identified by Senior Constable Scott Lardner, caused Michael to lose control and cross into the path of an oncoming vehicle.
