A mother has carried out a desperate rescue after a stolen caravan – with her three young children trapped inside – crashed into a ditch on the Gold Coast.
Police say the woman, aged 40, climbed on top of the overturned caravan and pulled her children, aged seven, five and two, to safety through a skylight.
A 59-year-old man has been charged over the incident.
He is accused of stealing the 1.5-tonne caravan – with the woman and her children inside – from a Tallai property about 5.30pm on Tuesday. The man allegedly attached the caravan to his station wagon using a single ratchet strap before driving away.
According to police, the mother managed to escape while it was moving, but her children remained inside.
Her pet Rottweiler, which had been under the caravan when it was taken, suffered head and leg injuries.
Investigators said the caravan gathered speed as it travelled downhill, overtaking the station wagon before both vehicles crashed into a ditch about 80 metres from the property’s driveway.
“The mother then managed to drag the children out through the skylight,” police said.
While the children were unharmed, the man was taken to hospital as a precaution.
The Tallai man has been charged with unlawful use of a motor vehicle and dangerous operation of a motor vehicle.
He is due to appear in Southport Magistrates Court on November 10.
Images: Nine