Truckie so lucky in train crash - cops

MARK TAYLOR/ Waikato Times

CRASH AFTERMATH: A contractor's truck collided with the front of a 40-carriage train at an intersection in Morrinsville.

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A driver whose truck collided with a train in Morrinsville yesterday is being described as "the luckiest motorist" after he crawled out of the cab.

The man escaped serious injury after the J Swap Contractors truck he was driving collided with the front of a 40-carriage train at an intersection on Bolton and Kiwitahi Railway Rds at 12.48pm yesterday.

The truck was severely damaged and the driver suffered concussion and suspected neck and spinal injuries. The train driver was unharmed.

Matamata-Piako road policing sergeant Neil Mansill said the driver was "probably the luckiest motorist today in the Waikato".

"It's not every day your vehicle gets hit by a train and you can walk away from it, is it?"

The railway signals were working before the crash.

The engine sustained minor damage and continued its journey from Hamilton to Tauranga three hours later after a replacement driver arrived to take over.

- © Fairfax NZ News