An inquiry to the police headquarters in Cologne on Thursday evening revealed that a 15-year-old who had been in the camper van may have suffered life threatening injuries. Because of the severity of the accident, an alarm was put out to authorities about “massive injuries” and numerous emergency vehicles, two emergency physicians and the Rheinbach Fire Department were called to the scene. For hours on the A 61 towards Koblenz, cars remained at a standstill.

Police and the accident investigation team had to clear the road of debris and secure any clues or information that might be needed. The accident happened at around 4:15 pm, a kilometer away from the Rheinbach exit off the A 61. The police spokeswoman said the 60-year-old driver of the truck from Poland crashed into the camper van which was standing at the end of a traffic jam. When the 40-ton truck crashed into the camper, that vehicle in turn hit a VW Golf and a small Mercedes van.

The rear of the camper van was completely destroyed by the force of the impact, which was so strong that a large part of the interior of the car spread over the motorway, everything from a mattress to cosmetics to a baby carriage. At the time of the accident, four people were in the camping vehicle.

The driver of the camper van (52) suffered minor injuries. Next to him in the front seat, a 53-year-old suffered serious injuries. A 15-year-old passenger suffered severe injuries and a 17-year-old was only slightly injured. Police said the driver of the truck was also injured, as well as the driver of the VW Golf.

All of the seven injured persons were taken to hospital. A police helicopter had landed at the accident scene but did not transport any of the injured. Police expected the closure of the A 61 to last until late in the evening. (Orig. text: Axel Vogel)