Johannesburg - Rescue workers warned of severe tailbacks on the N1 on Friday afternoon after a pile-up involving two pantechnikons, a 10-ton truck, a bakkie and a bus at Weltevreden Park.
Only the two occupants of the bakkie were injured in the crash - when their load of steel smashed through the vehicle's rear window into the cab, hitting the back of their heads, said ER24 spokeswoman Riana Beech.
They were taken to hospital with head, neck and back injuries. Their conditions were stable.
At the time of the accident, the bus was broken down in the emergency lane at the Fourteenth avenue offramp, in the direction of Pretoria, said Beech. There were no passengers on board.
The bakkie was behind the bus, trying to rejoin the flow of traffic.
A 10-ton truck could not stop in time and ploughed into the back of the bakkie, sending it hurtling into the back of the bus.
The truck then veered across all three lanes of the highway overturning on the median between the north and south carriageways.
Beech said an 18-wheeled truck came to a halt on the highway in an attempt to avoid the crash. It was tail-ended by another 18-wheeler travelling behind it.
She said traffic was badly affected with only the middle lane of the highway open.
