Nambour officer’s journey from crash survivor to road safety advocate

Acting Sergeant Ellie Jupp is encouraging road users to control what you can control this Queensland Road Safety Week, five years after being involved in a motorbike crash that almost took her life.

Acting Sergeant Jupp is currently working in General Duties at Nambour Police Station and is a passionate advocate for road safety, hoping people can learn from her experiences.

In January 2019, Acting Sergeant Jupp was travelling home from work on her motorbike, when she was hit by a car on Bradman Avenue in Maroochydore.

She sustained two brain bleeds, nerve damage, collapsed lungs and five broken ribs and was transported first to Sunshine Coast University Hospital before being flown to the Royal Brisbane and Women’s Hospital.

She remained there in a coma for two days, in the ICU for eight days and then continued onto weeks, months and years of recovery.

“I sustained a long-term brain injury which I still have to this day, but fortunately, I’ve been able to recover pretty well, and the recovery is ongoing,” Acting Sergeant Jupp said.

“Everyone I speak to says there was nothing I could have done to prevent it, it’s just the decision I made in the lead up to it that saved me.

“Wearing my helmet, my jacket and riding as safe as possible prevented me from losing my life.”

Motorcycle riders and their passengers make up around 27 per cent of lives lost on Queensland roads so far in 2024, a shocking statistic when motorcycles make up only around 5 per cent of vehicles registered on the road.

As one of the most vulnerable road users, research shows that they are 30 times more likely to be killed in a crash than car occupants.

This Queensland Road Safety Week, Queensland Police Service is urging all motorists to work together as one team to keep our roads safe. Every decision we make behind the wheel counts

Acting Sergeant Jupp was traveling home from work on her motorbike when she was hit by a car on Bradman Ave