9 Oct 2012

Australian soldier remains critical after truck rolls

9:32 am on 9 October 2012

Investigations are continuing into what caused a military truck to overturn during a defence exercise in Sydney, leaving 18 soldiers injured.

The truck careered off the side of the road at Sydney's Holsworthy Barracks on Monday morning, rolled several times and threw soldiers from the vehicle.

One soldier remains in a critical condition in hospital, Defence officials said on Tuesday. Others were being treated for cuts, bruises and broken bones.

Metropolitan crash investigation unit commander Inspector Steve Blair has said speed may have caused the truck to roll.

At the time of the crash, the open-topped truck was travelling in convoy with a support vehicle carrying equipment, Inspector Blair said.

Two of the injured were transported by air to Sydney metropolitan hospitals and 11 were transported by road, Defence said.

Another five defence personnel were treated on site before being transported to the Holsworthy Military Hospital. The exact details of the injuries are yet to be confirmed.

New South Wales police said their inquiries were ongoing.