A 19-YEAR-OLD Fish Creek man, who rolled his ute multiple times on Savages Road, Fish Creek in May this year, on his way home from helping a mate pull a tractor out of the mud, was told by Judicial Registrar, Anthony Gwynne, at the Korumburra Magistrates’ Court last week that he’s lucky to be alive.
Tyson Delbridge was facing three charges arising from the incident: one of careless driving, one of driving over the legal limit (0.062), and another of driving an unregistered vehicle.
According to a summary read for the court by police prosecutor Leading Senior Constable Tim Cavanagh, Delbridge was ejected from the vehicle on impact before it was completely consumed by fire.
“At approximately 12.30am on May 28, 2025, the accused was driving his vehicle, a white 1999 Ford utility, east on Savages Road, Fish Creek. The accused lost control of his vehicle, resulting in the vehicle rolling over multiple times, causing the accused to be totally ejected from the vehicle.”
LSC Cavanagh said the man Delbridge had been assisting with his tractor, Jake Bland, drove past the scene and found the driver slumped next to his car.
“At this time, the accused vehicle was on fire. By the time the CFA members arrived, the vehicle was fully engulfed and destroyed,” said LSC Cavanagh.
“The accused was transported by Ambulance Victoria to the Traralgon hospital, where a sample of his blood was taken at 3.25am.”
The sample later revealed a blood/alcohol concentration of 0.062, where it should have been zero.
During an interview at the Foster Police Station on August 5, Delbridge admitted drinking but said he couldn’t recall much about the crash.
“Just young and dumb, I guess,” was his explanation at the time.
Speaking to the Judicial Registrar in court last Wednesday, Delbridge said he hadn’t planned to drive that night but was simply helping a mate. He said he shouldn’t have been driving and was sorry for what he’d done.
Mr Gwynne asked Delbridge if he realised how lucky he was to be alive.
“You’re incredibly lucky to be here today,” he said.
“You were lucky you were thrown from the vehicle, before it was engulfed by fire, as a result of that, you’re lucky not to have sustained any serious injuries.
“And you’re lucky you had a friend who came past at the time.”
Delbridge replied: “Yeah, I know. Very lucky.”
Prior to fixing a penalty, Mr Gwynne asked about his financial situation and whether or not he had a job.
Delbridge said he was an apprentice ‘sparky’ and would rent a house closer to his work as a result of losing his licence.
He fined the teenager $1000 and cancelled his licence for six months.
“Take your luck with you, you’re free to go,” said Mr Gwynne.
The judicial registrar also remarked that there appeared to be some media interest in the case as a result of three media outlets applying for the charge sheet, summary and photos of the incident.
Citing the principles of open justice, LSC Cavanagh offered no objection to the release of the material.
It soon became clear outside the court afterwards why there was additional media interest in the case with reporters and animal activists questioning Delbridge over the deaths of up to nine wombats in Venus Bay in February this year.
Delbridge is set to appear in the same court on Thursday, October 2, facing charges relating to the wombat incident.
Asked by the Sentinel-Times if he intended to plead guilty to the charges, Tyson Delbridge made no comment, but a family member responded later saying: “None of this crap is proven.”
The charges are being brought by Department of Energy, Environment and Climate Action.
