Man charged with murder after shooting of woman

Police have charged a man following the death of a woman and the serious injury of a man in South Mackay on Wednesday.

A woman was shot dead and a man injured in an alleged attack that sparked an emergency declaration and manhunt in the Queensland city of Mackay.

Police arrested a 31-year-old man outside a fast-food restaurant hours after the “absolutely shocking” incident resulted in a number of streets being locked down.

Officers were called to a Robb Place address just after 4.30pm after reports that a woman had been shot.

When police arrived, they found a deceased woman and a man with non-life-threatening injuries to his hand.

District Superintendent Graeme Paine said the woman, 34, had driven into Robb Place when a 31-year-old man approached and fired into the vehicle, striking the woman.

Two young teenagers who were also in the vehicle fled to a nearby residence, after which a 66-year-old man came to the woman’s aid, Paine told reporters.

The gunman allegedly shot him in the chest.

The woman died from her gunshot wound, while the 66-year-old was taken to hospital in a serious but stable condition.