Tanker crushes car, bakkie - 5 dead
2012-12-08 23:15
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Johannesburg - A multi-vehicle accident near Umbumbulu, south of Durban, on Saturday evening has left five people dead and two injured, paramedics said.
"A tanker truck, single cab bakkie and a [car] collided into one another on the R603 near Unbumbulu this evening," ER24 spokesperson Vanessa Jackson said.
"The tanker truck was carrying a load of molasses, and following the collision , the cabin had become disconnected from the test of the vehicle, having been ripped from the body, tearing the tanker open."
The cabin came to a rest on top of the car, crushing it beneath its weight and killing the person inside.
Molasses was also spilled across the road, leaking out of the tanker which had been punctured.
"Of the two occupants travelling in the tanker truck, one sustained fatal injuries and the other moderate injuries," said Jackson.
"The man who had died on scene was found just outside of the cabin, face down in a pool of molasses."
The other person was treated for his injuries on the scene and then transported to hospital for additional treatment.
Dazed
Inside the bakkie there were three passengers including the driver.
A woman and girl had been sitting in the front cabin of the bakkie and a man in the enclosed back section.
All three suffered fatal injuries and were declared dead on the scene, trapped in the wreckage.
"The second survivor of the accident was found walking around the scene, but there was no indication from the patient as to which vehicle he had been travelling in," Jackson said.
"The patient was transported to hospital by ambulance for further care."
The road remains closed in the area for clean up operations.
- SAPA
