The Bell 206L-3 helicopter, named Capricorn, was operating a medical evacuation flight to convey a patient from a property north-west of Rockhampton. Due to widespread thick fog, the pilot was unable to land at Rockhampton hospital and so the helicopter was redirected to land at Marlborough and transfer the patient to road paramedics. The pilot could not land on the Marlborough school sports field and requested the ambulance crew to position the vehicle at the lighted intersection of the Bruce Highway and the Marlborough to Sarina Road. At approximately 2.05 am, while the pilot was attempting to find a safe landing site adjacent to the intersection, the helicopter lost engine power and impacted the ground in a paddock approximately 300 metres from the intersection.

All five passengers on board died. The investigation of the crash revealed that the aircraft had not been carrying sufficient amounts of fuel for the journey, which caused an engine failure. Investigators were unable to determine why the pilot failed to perform a safe landing even after the engine failure.