A woman was injured as she jumped clear of an out-of-control garbage truck that felled a power pole and ploughed into a house at Unanderra.
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The Remondis truck had a 25-year-old man at the wheel and a green waste wheelie bin still in its arm when it mysteriously picked up speed during a downhill run along Beatus Street, about 11.25am on Monday.
Resident Troy Delbanco saw the truck travel a short distance with his neighbour’s bin raised, before it smacked the object up against a power pole, dropped it and accelerated down the hill.
It bypassed a neighbouring house then slammed into a second power pole, snapping the timber apart in two places and causing wires carrying 11,000 volts of electricity to drop onto the road.
‘‘I saw the power lines sag. It sounded like an explosion. I ran inside to get my phone - I knew what had happened,’’ Mr Delbanco said.
‘‘He smashed through that telegraph pole like it was a toothpick - it was just gone.
‘‘He’s lucky to be alive, I reckon.’’
The impact uprooted concrete in the driveway at number 56. Further on, the truck burst a water meter at number 54, then smashed into the unoccupied two-storey house at number 52.
NSW Ambulance paramedics treated a 63-year-old woman who narrowly avoided being hit out the front of one of the neighbouring properties.
The Mercury understands the woman injured her leg on a garden bed while diving out of the truck’s way. She was transported to Wollongong Hospital in a stable condition.
The driver was helped out of the truck by bystanders and was also transported to Wollongong Hospital with minor injuries.
Illawarra Ambulance district Inspector Terry Morrow said the man was in a stable condition.
‘‘The patient was diagnosed with confusion, query concussion,’’ he said.
Representatives from Remondis are working with NSW Police to determine the cause of the accident.
The company has offered alternative accommodation to the family whose home was damaged by the crash.
“This is a serious and regretful event,” Remondis Australia NSW General Manager Susie McBurney said.
“Those who have been injured are foremost in mind. We are ready to assist both the injured woman and our driver however possible and will act accordingly once more information is known.’’
Ms McBurney said the truck involved was new.
Specialist Fire and Rescue NSW crews remained at the crash site Monday afternoon in a bid to stabilise the home and the truck, which came to rest at a 15-20 degree angle, with several wheels in the air and its cabin inside the home’s main bedroom.
NSW Fire and Rescue Wollongong station officer Philip Parker said emergency services personnel had swept the house for occupants but were then unable to immediately re-enter.
‘‘We’re concerned about building collapse and the stability of the truck,’’ he said.
Crews also worked at the site to clean up a fuel spill.
According to Endeavour Energy about 1400 customers in the area were without power in the accident’s aftermath.
The power supply was returned to all but 101 homes as at 3.30pm.
Streets still affected by the outage are Adams Avenue, Beatus Street, Beverley Avenue and Cummins Street.
A total of 101 homes are affected and power is estimated to be restored at 9pm.