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CrashStats

Serious M4 crash in South Gloucestershire on 18 January 1989 at 14:00 involving a lorry

Fifteen lorries and a car were involved in a crash on the M4 in South Gloucestershire at 14:00 on Wednesday 18 January 1989. There were seven casualties: four people were seriously injured and three were slightly injured.

It happened in daylight in fog or mist on a wet dual carriageway with a 70 mph limit, away from any junction.

Severity
Serious
Date
18 Jan 1989
Wednesday, 14:00
Vehicles
16
Lorry and 15 others
Casualties
7
4 seriously injured, 3 slightly injured

Location of the crash

Police recorded the crash at latitude 51.58037, longitude -2.59165, in the BS35 postcode district.

Map of where the crash happened in South Gloucestershire

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  • 1 crash
  • Serious

Collision details

Basic information

Reference
198952DF00085
Council area
South Gloucestershire
Police force
Avon and Somerset

Road and location details

First road class
Motorway
First road number
4
Road type
Dual carriageway
Speed limit
70 mph

Junction information

Junction type
Not at junction or within 20 metres

Pedestrian crossing information

Crossing facilities
No physical crossing facility within 50 m

Environmental conditions

Light conditions
Daylight
Weather
Fog or mist
Road surface
Wet or damp

The 6 nearest recorded crashes

The nearest, at the same spot, was a fatal crash on 30 July 1996.

Vehicles involved (16)

  • Vehicle 1: Lorry

    Goods vehicle over 3.5 tonnes

    Towing and articulation
    Articulated vehicle
    Manoeuvre
    Going ahead
    Travelling from
    North West
    Travelling to
    South East
    Skidding and overturning
    Jackknifed
    First point of impact
    Front
    Driver sex
    Male
    Driver age
    21 years

  • Vehicle 2: Lorry

    Goods vehicle over 3.5 tonnes

    Towing and articulation
    Articulated vehicle
    Manoeuvre
    Going ahead
    Travelling from
    North West
    Travelling to
    South East
    First point of impact
    Offside
    Driver sex
    Male
    Driver age
    50 years

  • Vehicle 3: Lorry

    Goods vehicle over 3.5 tonnes

    Towing and articulation
    Articulated vehicle
    Manoeuvre
    Going ahead
    Travelling from
    North West
    Travelling to
    South East
    First point of impact
    Back
    Driver sex
    Male
    Driver age
    38 years

  • Vehicle 4: Lorry

    Goods vehicle over 3.5 tonnes

    Manoeuvre
    Going ahead
    Travelling from
    North West
    Travelling to
    South East
    Skidding and overturning
    Skidded
    First point of impact
    Front
    Driver sex
    Male
    Driver age
    45 years

  • Vehicle 5: Lorry

    Goods vehicle over 3.5 tonnes

    Towing and articulation
    Articulated vehicle
    Manoeuvre
    Going ahead
    Travelling from
    North West
    Travelling to
    South East
    First point of impact
    Back
    Driver sex
    Male
    Driver age
    30 years

  • Vehicle 6: Lorry

    Goods vehicle over 3.5 tonnes

    Manoeuvre
    Going ahead
    Travelling from
    North West
    Travelling to
    South East
    Skidding and overturning
    Skidded
    First point of impact
    Front
    Driver sex
    Male
    Driver age
    29 years

  • Vehicle 7: Lorry

    Goods vehicle over 3.5 tonnes

    Towing and articulation
    Articulated vehicle
    Manoeuvre
    Going ahead
    Travelling from
    North West
    Travelling to
    South East
    Skidding and overturning
    Skidded
    First point of impact
    Front
    Driver sex
    Male
    Driver age
    42 years

  • Vehicle 8: Lorry

    Goods vehicle over 3.5 tonnes

    Towing and articulation
    Articulated vehicle
    Manoeuvre
    Going ahead
    Travelling from
    North West
    Travelling to
    South East
    Skidding and overturning
    Skidded
    First point of impact
    Front
    Driver sex
    Male
    Driver age
    43 years

  • Vehicle 9: Lorry

    Goods vehicle over 3.5 tonnes

    Towing and articulation
    Articulated vehicle
    Manoeuvre
    Going ahead
    Travelling from
    North West
    Travelling to
    South East
    First point of impact
    Back
    Driver sex
    Male
    Driver age
    40 years

  • Vehicle 10: Lorry

    Goods vehicle over 3.5 tonnes

    Towing and articulation
    Articulated vehicle
    Manoeuvre
    Going ahead
    Travelling from
    North West
    Travelling to
    South East
    First point of impact
    Back
    Driver sex
    Male
    Driver age
    43 years

  • Vehicle 11: Lorry

    Goods vehicle over 3.5 tonnes

    Towing and articulation
    Articulated vehicle
    Manoeuvre
    Going ahead
    Travelling from
    North West
    Travelling to
    South East
    Skidding and overturning
    Skidded
    First point of impact
    Front
    Driver sex
    Male
    Driver age
    37 years

  • Vehicle 12: Lorry

    Goods vehicle over 3.5 tonnes

    Towing and articulation
    Articulated vehicle
    Manoeuvre
    Going ahead
    Travelling from
    North West
    Travelling to
    South East
    Skidding and overturning
    Skidded
    First point of impact
    Front
    Driver sex
    Male
    Driver age
    50 years

  • Vehicle 13: Lorry

    Goods vehicle over 3.5 tonnes

    Towing and articulation
    Articulated vehicle
    Manoeuvre
    Going ahead
    Travelling from
    North West
    Travelling to
    South East
    First point of impact
    Front
    Driver sex
    Male
    Driver age
    25 years

  • Vehicle 14: Lorry

    Goods vehicle over 3.5 tonnes

    Towing and articulation
    Articulated vehicle
    Manoeuvre
    Going ahead
    Travelling from
    North West
    Travelling to
    South East
    Skidding and overturning
    Skidded
    First point of impact
    Front
    Driver sex
    Male
    Driver age
    46 years

  • Vehicle 15: Car

    Manoeuvre
    Going ahead
    Travelling from
    North West
    Travelling to
    South East
    Skidding and overturning
    Skidded
    First point of impact
    Front
    Driver sex
    Female
    Driver age
    21 years

  • Vehicle 16: Lorry

    Goods vehicle over 3.5 tonnes

    Towing and articulation
    Articulated vehicle
    Manoeuvre
    Going ahead
    Travelling from
    North West
    Travelling to
    South East
    First point of impact
    Front
    Driver sex
    Male
    Driver age
    26 years

Casualties (7)

  • Casualty 1: Driver

    Slight

    Male, aged 21, goods vehicle occupant (over 3.5 tonnes), in vehicle 1 (Lorry)

  • Casualty 2: Driver

    Slight

    Male, aged 45, goods vehicle occupant (over 3.5 tonnes), in vehicle 4 (Lorry)

  • Casualty 3: Driver

    Serious

    Male, aged 29, goods vehicle occupant (over 3.5 tonnes), in vehicle 6 (Lorry)

  • Casualty 4: Driver

    Serious

    Male, aged 50, goods vehicle occupant (over 3.5 tonnes), in vehicle 12 (Lorry)

  • Casualty 5: Driver

    Serious

    Male, aged 25, goods vehicle occupant (over 3.5 tonnes), in vehicle 13 (Lorry)

  • Casualty 6: Driver

    Serious

    Male, aged 46, goods vehicle occupant (over 3.5 tonnes), in vehicle 14 (Lorry)

  • Casualty 7: Driver

    Slight

    Male, aged 26, goods vehicle occupant (over 3.5 tonnes), in vehicle 16 (Lorry)

Data source

This record comes from the Department for Transport’s road safety data (STATS19), in which police forces in Great Britain record every road crash reported to them where someone was injured. It is reference 198952DF00085 in the data published on GOV.UK under the Open Government Licence v3.0, and one of the crashes counted in the South Gloucestershire road accident statistics for 1989.