Simon Hunter
SIX people died in the early hours of Tuesday after a lorry ploughed into a group of stationary vehicles on the AP-4 motorway in Sevilla province, Andalucia region. Two of the victims were members of Spain’s Guardia Civil.
The accident happened at 4.40am, according to Spanish news agencies, at a Guardia Civil checkpoint on the stretch of road, located in Los Palacios.
The lorry driver is thought to have made a sharp turn after being given instructions by civil guards at the checkpoint, losing control and crashing into vehicles that were on the hard shoulder.
Two of the victims were members of the Guardia Civil’s Rapid Action Group (GAR), while the other four were members of the public.
Three other GAR officers were seriously injured and were taken to local hospitals for treatment.
The lorry driver tested negative for drugs and alcohol but has been arrested pending an investigation.
Officers will seek to determine whether the lorry driver was distracted or not paying attention to the road.
On Tuesday morning, the area where the accident took place had been cordoned off.
Spain’s Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez took to social network X (formerly Twitter) to send his condolences to the families of the victims.
The regional premier of the Andalusia region, Juanma Moreno, also released a message in the wake of what he called a ‘tragic’ accident.
“We are very sad about the tragic traffic accident that took place in Los Palacios and has left several people dead, two of them civil guards,” he wrote. “Our deep sympathies to the affected families and to the Guardia Civil.”
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