Overview
- A truck carrying a very large beam came to rest crosswise on the A-2 in Sant Andreu de la Barca shortly before 19:30 on Monday, touching off a chain collision that involved about ten other vehicles.
- Catalan fire crews deployed nine units to the scene and extricated five people from a vehicle trapped beneath the load while nine medical units from the SEM treated dozens of casualties on site.
- Reports of injured people vary across outlets, with accounts ranging from 18 to 21 affected and at least one person in serious condition; the more severe cases were taken to Bellvitge, Sant Boi and Moisès Broggi hospitals.
- Traffic remains constrained with only one lane open on the A-2 toward Barcelona, causing knock-on congestion on the AP-7 and B-23 and disrupting regional travel into the evening.
- Authorities have opened an investigation into why the beam ended crosswise on the carriageway, a probe that will review load securing, routing and escorting rules for oversized transports.