The elderly couple who died when a truck ploughed into their bedroom have been remembered as pillars of their community, as their ‘totally devastated’ family break their silence.
Retired farming couple Jim Madden, 81, and his wife Carmel, 80, were killed when a truck travelling east on the Princess Highway veered onto the wrong side of the road and smashed into their property in Tower Hill, regional Victoria, around 7am on Friday.
Their ‘proud’ family issued a heartbreaking statement saying the pair were loving and kind and always wanted to make a difference to the lives of others.
‘Jim and Carmel devoted their life to their family and have given us all so many opportunities and were immensely proud of us all,’ the statement read.
‘As hard as it may be for everyone, they would want us and all their valued friends, the Tower Hill and Koroit communities, and all those in the farming and racing industry to continue on working to make the world a better place’.
‘Love to all, from the proud family of Jim and Carmel’.
Shocking photos from the scene showed the catastrophic damage to their house.
The 70-year-old male driver and sole occupant of the truck was transported to hospital with non-life-threatening injuries.
Footage from the scene showed the truck crashing through a paddock, into a fence and down one side of the house before tearing off part of the roof.
It is understood the truck, which was believed to be travelling from Port Fairy to Warrnambool, was unloaded.
Major Collision Investigation Unit detectives were earlier at the scene and emergency services had to wear protective gear as the house had been contaminated with asbestos.
Detective Sergeant Stephen Hill from Victoria Police said investigations are ongoing.
‘We’re keeping an open mind as to what was going on,’ he told reporters at the scene on Friday.
‘Whether it’s a mechanical fault with the truck, whether there’s a medical episode involved, whether it’s inattention, whether it’s phone use involved, all those things will have to be looked at in the next few days.’
Sergeant Hill described the section of the road as ‘dead straight’ and said there would be no reason for vehicles to swerve unless they were overtaking.
Locals in the tight knit community have been left shattered following their deaths and described the pair as hardworking people.
One neighbour Leonie Slaninka told the Herald Sun the couple would always lend a helping hand to others.
‘They were a lovely couple who gave so much to the community and southwest Victoria,’ Ms Slaninka said.
The Mickey Bourke’s Koroit Hotel owner Peter Archbold told the newspaper he had known the couple for 40 years.
‘They’re community-minded people. Anything to do with horses, shows, flowers, they were into it.’
Mr and Ms Madden were also farmers, who sold cattle at the Warrnambool sales yards, before it was closed down last year.
Mr Madden was also a successful horse trainer and his family has been in the farming business for decades before the couple looked after cattle on their property.
Around 83 people live in Tower Hill according to the 2021 census.
Anyone who witnessed the incident, has CCTV, dashcam footage or any other information that could assist police is urged to contact Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000.