A man has died after his crane rolled off a rural Gold Coast road and into a creek after first responders were unable to reach him in time.

The 69-year-old was operating the vehicle on Thursday morning at a residential property in Vita Bella Court, Currumbin Valley before it rolled off a steep embankment.

Emergency services were called to the scene at around 8.30am, with both fire brigade and state ambulance services finding the man trapped inside the machinery.

Superintendent Scott Knowles said while it was believed the man might have initially been alive, the crane’s precarious position made it difficult for emergency services to reach him.

“Fire brigade and Queensland Ambulance Service were on scene and attempted to rescue this person. Unfortunately, he died at the scene as a result of injuries that occurred from that accident,” he said.

The process was made even more difficult due to fuel leakage and the “precarious position” of the crane, which had rolled down the embankment towards a creek.

Despite failed attempts to rouse the driver, emergency services believed he might have been unconscious inside the vehicle when they first arrived on scene.

“In terms of trying to safely recover the driver, at the time we believe he was alive, (but) there was also obviously risk for those first responders that were there,” Superintendent Knowles said.

“Unfortunately, by the time we managed to get to the driver he was deceased.”

While investigations into the circumstances surrounding the incident are ongoing, police believe the man was only “test driving” the crane and was not operating it for any work activity.

The incident has also been reported to Workplace Health and Safety Queensland.