A man has been flown to hospital after he spent almost three hours trapped underneath a garbage truck in Sydney’s northern beaches.
Emergency services were called about 7am to Barrenjoey Road at Bilgola Beach where they worked to free the driver from the cabin of his utility vehicle.
The garbage truck, carrying vegetation, rolled and landed on the ute, crushing it and trapping its driver just before 7am.
A NSW Ambulance spokesman said just after 10am the man in the ute had been freed and flown to the Royal North Shore Hospital.
He was “miraculously” in a stable condition with only minor injuries of cuts and abrasions, the spokesman said.
The driver of the garbage truck appeared to be uninjured and had been taken earlier to Northern Beaches Hospital for assessment.
NSW Police and Fire and Rescue crews are still working to remove the truck, which remains on its side more than three hours after the incident was first reported to emergency services.
Four ambulance road crews were dispatched to the scene, as well as a critical care teamxjmtzyw on the Toll rescue helicopter.
“Heavy Rescue” specialists from Narrabeen Fire Station were called in to assist, along with a crane.
“This is a timely reminder that calling triple-0 when you are involved in or see a crash can be the difference between life and death,” FRNSW Superintendent Scott Dodson said.
Barrenjoey Rd is closed in both directions at the Bilgola Bends, with commuters warned to avoid the area if possible.
A NSW Transport Management Centres spokeswoman said light vehicles could use the Serpentine to get around the road closure.
“Traffic is heavy in both directions. The advice would be to avoid that area and go a different way if you can,” she said.
Three bus routes have been temporarily affected, with the Route 199 starting at Newport Beach instead of Palm Beach and the Route 191 and 192 not running at all.
