Mönchengladbach (dpa / lnw) – In a traffic accident on the A61 near Mönchengladbach, three people were injured, two of them seriously. A truck that was transporting dangerous goods drove into another semi-trailer at the Mönchengladbach-Holt junction on Monday evening, the Mönchengladbach fire department said. The force of the impact tore off the driver’s cab and pressed it against the transport container, trapping the driver. The driver of the other truck was also trapped in his cab. Both were freed and taken to hospitals with serious injuries. The exact cause of the accident was initially unclear.

Immediately in front of the two trucks, there was also a rear-end collision involving two trucks and a car. The driver of the car was slightly injured. How exactly this accident was related in time to the other accident was initially unclear. Further details about the course of the accident were also not yet known.

The dangerous goods container remained undamaged, but diesel fuel escaped in a “not inconsiderable amount” which also penetrated into the green area next to the lane. The Autobahn was completely closed in the direction of Koblenz until late in the evening.