Firefighters had to cut a driver out of his truck after it collided with another truck in NSW, causing traffic to bank up for 13km on the M1 Pacific Motorway during peak hour.
The trucks collided around 6.20am on Thursday, forcing two lanes to close near the Hawkesbury River Bridge at Cowan.
All southbound lanes have now reopened on the motorway after both trucks were cleared around 9am.
Fire and Rescue NSW spokesperson Adam Dewberry said one of the truck drivers was trapped inside the cabin.
It was a “delicate, hour-long rescue mission” to eventually cut him out of the vehicle.
A NSW Police spokesperson confirmed that the driver suffered minor injuries.
Mr Dewberry said the second truck – a B-double tanker – was carrying base oil.
While not as volatile or easily ignitable as petrol, base oil can start a “fierce fire” if ignited and can be difficult to extinguish.
“There was no leakage of the tanker contents, only a minor fuel leak of the diesel fuel tanks,” Mr Dewberry said.
Traffic banked up for almost 13km on the motorway as motorists funnelled into one lane heading southbound, according to a Transport Management Centre spokesperson.
The incident took place not far from the scene of a multi-vehicle crash at Cowan on Wednesday.
Drivers were urged to allow extra travel time and drive with caution, while light vehicles were directed to use the old Pacific Highway to bypass the incident site.