Gratkorn tunnel closed

Collision with a truck in the tunnel on the A 9

Trucks and cars collided in the Gratkorn Tunnel(Bild: FF Friesach Wörth)

Bad weather and heavy traffic led to several accidents in Styria on Monday. There was an accident in the Gratkorn Tunnel on the A 9 with one casualty.

The serious accident occurred at around 12.30 p.m. in the Gratkorn Tunnel on the A 9 towards Graz: "For unknown reasons, a car and two trucks collided in the tunnel and the driver of one truck was injured to an undetermined degree," wrote the Friesach Wörth fire department on Facebook. Three fire departments were deployed to the scene, primarily to clean up spilled fuel.

According to the police, who investigated the accident, it happened as follows: A 24-year-old female car driver from Graz saw an open door on the loading area of a truck in front of her. She overtook the truck and slowed it down until it came to a standstill. When the two vehicles came to a standstill, a truck driven by a 57-year-old Czech man was no longer able to brake.

"The truck driver's cab was badly damaged by the collision and the man had to be freed from the wreckage by drivers following behind. A doctor from Germany who joined them immediately administered first aid," the report continues. The seriously injured Czech had to be taken to the UKH. 

Massive congestion
The tunnel was closed for the whole afternoon, until 6 pm. There were kilometers of traffic jams. A large-scale detour was set up via the S6, the Seebenstein junction and the A2.