Thirty-seven vehicles collided in Saratov after a truck's brakes failed, the regional Emergency Situations Ministry said Tuesday.
"Seventeen people were injured, nine of them were hospitalized, and four have already been discharged from hospital," a ministry spokesman told RIA-Novosti. No one died in the crash, but one man was seriously injured and had to be cut out of his mangled car with hydraulic tools, Versiya newspaper reported.
The accident occurred on Monday evening on Ulitsa Tankistov in the southern Russian city and involved two trucks, two buses, two minivans and 31 cars. The pile-up was caused by brake failure in one of the trucks, the ministry said in its report. Poor driving conditions caused by heavy rain in the region may also have added to the seriousness of the crash.
The YouTube footage shows the aftermath of the huge smash, which saw 36 emergency services workers and 12 pieces of equipment called into action.
Material from The Moscow Times is included in this report.
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