4 killed in pile-up on Makkah highway

Saudi Gazette report

MAKKAH/JEDDAH – Four people were killed and several others injured, some of them seriously, in a terrible pile-up on the Jeddah-Makkah Expressway late Thursday.

The road was closed for several hours following the accident involving at least eight vehicles, including a trailer truck.

One witness said the truck overturned and skidded on the road hitting several vehicles.

The accident led to traffic jams at several points on the busy highway that links the holy city with Jeddah’s King Abdulaziz International Airport.

Witnesses said waiting lines of vehicles reached the Bahra Bridge.

Some motorists caught in the jam were seen looking for alternative routes.

A medevac helicopter and Red Crescent ambulances evacuated the injured to hospitals.

A Red Crescent air ambulance was called in to evacuate serious cases from the accident scene as the traffic jams made it impossible to carry them to hospitals by road.