Two pedestrians narrowly escaped a life-threatening situation when 15-ton concrete slabs fell from a lorry onto a busy motorway. The shocking incident, captured on camera, showed the massive slabs detaching from the truck and crashing onto the road, hitting multiple vehicles and narrowly missing bystanders.
The harrowing event unfolded on the North-South Motorway in southern Australia around 10:30 am on a Friday. As the lorry was changing lanes, its heavy cargo shifted, causing two hefty concrete segments, each weighing 15 tonnes, to plummet onto the roadway. The impact damaged three parked cars on the motorway’s shoulder where two pedestrians were present, enveloping the area in a cloud of dust.
One of the pedestrians sustained a suspected broken arm and was rushed to the hospital by ambulance, while two others suffered minor injuries. Authorities expressed astonishment at the fact that no fatalities occurred during the incident.
Witnessing the chaos was Vicas Mataru, a father-of-two who was assisting a colleague with a broken-down vehicle when the concrete slabs descended. Mataru, who ended up in the hospital with a broken arm, described the moment as deafening, recalling the urgent warning he gave his colleague to flee. He credited their survival to sheer luck, calling it nothing short of a miracle.
Mataru recounted how a yellow car absorbed much of the impact, diverting the concrete slabs away from where they were standing. The lorry driver later approached him to apologize, attributing the incident to another vehicle cutting in front and causing an abrupt stop, leading to the cargo dislodging.
The lorry was en route to deliver concrete segments for the Torrens to Darlington (T2D) motorway construction project. Following the mishap, transportation of concrete segments was halted as a precaution while investigations are ongoing.
Subsequently, the damaged vehicles were towed away, and a crane was deployed to lift and clear the massive concrete slabs from the scene. Authorities are continuing their inquiries into the cause of the accident.