Constables Matthew Arnold and Rachel McCrow were shot dead in cold blood as they walked up the remote property’s driveway at Wieambilla, west of Brisbane.
Kirk hid behind a tree and phoned Acting Sergeant Justin Dryer at the Chinchilla Police station, 41 kilometres north of Wieambilla.
“He’s shot Rachel, I believe. She’s dead … there’s two of them. They’ve got Matthew’s gun now,” Kirk says to Dryer over the phone.
From left: Constables Rachel McCrow and Matthew Arnold, who were killed in the Wieambilla shooting, and constables Randall Kirk and Keely Brough, who survived the incident.
Kirk reports the two shooters are walking towards him with rifles after he fired a shot at them from his police-issue Glock handgun.
“Can you, like, obviously scramble from tree to tree to try and retreat out of there?” Dryer says.
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Kirk replies, “I’ll try,” before sprinting for his police vehicle and jumping over a locked gate with his Glock in one hand and his mobile phone in the other.
Multiple bullets strike the vehicle’s body and windscreen as Kirk gets behind the wheel, spraying the interior with glass fragments and causing him to yell in terror as he drives away.
The fourth officer in the group, Constable Keely Brough, was able to reach nearby grass where she hid from the shooters for two hours until backup arrived.
Kirk, who was shot in the abdomen and hip, gave evidence at the inquest on Tuesday at Brisbane Coroners Court.
The coroner was shown evidence that Nathaniel Train sat in a concealed position and watched the officers approach through the scope of his rifle before fatally shooting Constable Arnold.
Evidence was also presented that his brother, Gareth Train, walked up to a wounded Constable McCrow and fatally shot her in the head.
All three Trains were shot dead by specialist police six hours after the two constables were killed.
Nathaniel (left), Stacey and Gareth Train held extremist religious views.
They had refused to negotiate and opened fire on police helicopters and an armoured vehicle.
The coroner also released dozens of police crime scene photos showing equipment found at the property including the dead officers’ Glocks, a military ghillie suit designed to conceal a sniper, a bow and arrows, army backpacks, a bullet bandolier belt, and cardboard shooting targets with crude smiley faces drawn on.
Neighbour Alan Dare, 58, whose wife Kerry gave evidence on Wednesday, was shot dead minutes after he arrived at the Trains’ property following the ambush.
Dare went to the property when he saw smoke and feared it was a bushfire but did not realise the flames were coming from a police vehicle set alight by the Trains.
A video by Dare on his mobile phone captured his last minutes as he approached the fire and was shot through the chest by one of the Trains.
AAP with Marissa Calligeros
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