Two Nepalese women, Sarla Khadka and Areeza Suwal, were killed on Thursday night (September 5) in Melbourne’s north after stopping on the Hume Freeway to help an injured kangaroo.
The pair were driving towards the city when their car struck a kangaroo. According to Victoria Police, they stopped to check on the animal when another vehicle swerved to avoid their stationary car and struck them at high speed. Emergency services were called to the area just after 7.30pm following reports of two pedestrians being hit.
One of the victims died at the scene while the other was airlifted to hospital but later died. The driver of the oncoming vehicle remained at the scene and is assisting police with their investigation.
One of the victims, Areza Suwal, had celebrated her birthday just a day earlier on September 4. Married to Razan Twayana since 2022, she had just graduated from the Australian Catholic University to become a registered nurse at Melbourne’s Alfred Hospital. Friends described her as compassionate, ambitious, and deeply committed to her studies and new life in Australia. women killed saving a kangaroo
Her close friend, Sarla Khadka, who also lost her life in the crash, was remembered within Melbourne’s Nepalese community as warm-hearted and dedicated. Both women had forged even closer ties in Australia, supporting one another through their shared experiences of studying and working away from home. Their deaths have left the community in mourning.
Victoria Police Assistant Commissioner Glenn Weir expressed condolences while urging drivers to consider the risks of stepping onto busy highways.
“It is inherently dangerous to get out of vehicles to try and check on injured wildlife after they’ve been hit, and that’s exactly what happened last night,” he said.
The Hume Freeway, a major dual carriageway linking Sydney and Melbourne, has long been flagged for its crash hotspots, particularly at entry and exit points. The tragedy has reignited calls for both improved road safety measures and more community education about responding to wildlife collisions.
Weir also noted that police resources were stretched, limiting proactive patrols on dangerous stretches of freeway. women killed saving a kangaroo
“We want to be more visible but we are being incredibly stretched at the moment with a whole range of resource request complexities,” he added, pointing to last weekend’s protests as an example of how police attention was diverted from road safety operations.
Wildlife groups also weighed in, emphasising that while the women’s compassion was admirable, safety must come first on high-speed roads. They urge drivers to avoid stopping on freeways and instead contact emergency services or licensed wildlife rescuers. Advocates are also calling for better infrastructure such as wildlife crossings, clearer signage, and stronger public awareness campaigns to reduce the risk of road strikes.
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