A teenage boy has been charged with killing three people in a multivehicle crash after he allegedly stole a Mercedes from a Queensland home.

The 13-year-old was allegedly driving the stolen car when it crashed into the back of a Holden on Saltwater Creek Rd in Maryborough about 10.45pm on Sunday.

The Holden then hit a Mazda travelling in the opposite direction, killing the second car’s driver and sole occupant, a 52-year-old Torquay woman.

The driver and passenger of the Holden, a 17-year-old Oakhurst girl and 29-year-old Maryborough woman, also died at the scene.

A second passenger in the Holden, a 23-year-old Tinana woman, was airlifted to the Royal Brisbane and Women’s Hospital in a critical condition.

Police said a passenger in the Mercedes was believed to have fled the scene of the crash. The 13-year-old sustained minor injuries to his foot during the crash.

The Bundaberg boy had allegedly taken the Mercedes from a home in Maryborough about two hours before the fatal crash.

He was charged with three counts of dangerous driving causing death and one count of unlawful use of a motor vehicle.

The teen is due to appear in Maroochydore Childrens Court at a later date.

Assistant Commissioner Brian Connors said one of the victims was a nurse at the local hospital. She was on her way home from a shift.

The woman who was critically injured also had close links to the local police service.

“This is a tragic set of circumstances to affect a community, particularly a small community like Maryborough,” he said.

“Our thoughts and condolences go out to the victims and their families, and also the first responders who responded to the incident.

“For one [crash] to be so severe, there will no doubt be ripple effects right across the community of Wide Bay.”

The charges come six weeks after Queensland passed a suite of measures designed to drive down youth crime, including harsher prison terms for car thieves.

Police are still investigating the incident and have asked for information from anyone who saw the silver Mercedes in the Maryborough and Hervey Bay area before the crash.

Assistant Commissioner Connors said teenager who had been charged was known to police.

“The driver was not on any type of police bail at the time of the incident,” he said.

“I can’t go into specifics, but he was known to police.”

Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk on Monday said her heart went out to the grieving families.

“This is an awful awful tragedy and it should not be happening,” she said.

Opposition Leader David Crisafulli described the incident as “heartbreaking on so many levels”.

“The madness has to end, it’s devastating,” he said.

– with AAP