It's the kind of fallout from car crashes that you don't often think about.
Sergeant Michael Hollett, the head of the Forensic Crash Unit for Mackay District, said he had seen many crashes, but that one back in 2005 had stuck with him to this day.
"I still remember walking up to that car," Sgt Hollett said.
"The baby was sitting in its capsule.
"It had no visible injuries whatsoever, but it was deceased."
'It looked surreal'
Despite fewer cars being on the road during the pandemic this year, the road toll numbers are up 15 per cent.
What those numbers don't show is the human impact on the families and emergency services who have to deal with the aftermath of a fatal crash.
Sgt Hollett said despite the years that had passed, he often thought of that baby.
"It was a mother who had been driving back to Toowoomba at 3:00am," he said.
"It was obvious she had fallen asleep, left the road and hit a tree.
"Her six-month-old child, in a baby seat, died.
"It just looked like it was asleep — it's an image I see every now and again, it just stuck with me.
"It looked surreal."
Road safety message needs to be heard
Those working in road safety are desperate for drivers to get the message.
Sgt Hollett said many of the crashes he had been to so far in 2020 had been preventable.
"A lot of those crashes are fatigue-related and drug and alcohol-related, and that is really concerning," he said.
"Police can patrol, issue speeding tickets, but it gets to a point where drivers must take responsibility for their actions.
"Police can't be everywhere 24/7 — ultimately the responsibility for driver behaviour is up to you."
How do you cope?
Sgt Hollett said there was no one-size-fits-all approach to dealing with tragedy.
"Each individual officer has to look out for themselves and work out a way to deal with what they see at a crash scene," he said.
"If I went out to a crash scene, and I wanted to destress, I could do something simple like take the dog for a walk or do some exercise.
"Exercising for me is a great way to get rid of any images.
"I focus on what I'm doing, be it going for a ride on the bike or going to the gym — just simple things like that are a way to help."
