Terrifying moment truck jumps a red light ‘after its brakes failed’, smashing into cars and pedestrians and killing 22 people

At least 22 people are thought to have been killed in a horrific accident in Durban, South Africa.

The carnage happened when a truck crashed into four minibus taxis and a car in Fields Hill, Pinetown, at a busy crossing yesterday.

The horrific crash Thursday evening just before 7pm was filmed on video from the window of a car behind the taxis which had stopped for the red light. The car was seconds away from being rammed by the truck also.

The carnage happened at a busy crossing as the truck races through red light
The driver of the truck has since been arrested and charged with culpable homicide
people were flung from the vehicles as they were hit and then dragged by the truck. 
The crash was filmed by video in car just behind the taxis which got rammed



Seconds after the lights had turned green, the white taxis drive off and are rammed by the massive truck


Paramedics on the scene shortly after the crash - the death toll is at least 22, but could have risen to 24

The driver of the 18-wheeler truck has since been arrested and charged with culpable homicide.
Bystanders were roped in by paramedics to hold drip bags for some of the injured.


The eThekwini Fire Brigade used the Jaws-of-life to extract some of the injured and the dead from the mangled wreckage of the taxis. 
A local Netcare911 spokesperson Chris Botha told eNCA.com on Friday that the initial death toll was thought to be 27, but was lowered to 22, 19 of whom died at the scene and three later in hospital.
Botha said just after the crash: 'It's a total disaster here. A heavy-goods truck came down through Fields Hill and collided with two cars on the M13 and then four taxis and another car.
'Seven critical, eight serious injuries and miraculously, 11 escaped with relatively minor injuries.'
It was believed the truck crashed into the vehicles when its brakes failed.
The truck, belonging to Evergreen Transport, allegedly took the off-ramp from the M13 at the bottom of Fields Hill and crashed into the minibus taxis and car which had just pulled away after waiting for the lights to turn green at the intersection with Richmond Road.
The truck came to a standstill about 30 metres from the intersection.

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