A TRUCK crash has claimed 18 lives on a rugged mountainside that was the path to battle for thousands of Australians during World War II in Papua New Guinea.
The flatbed truck was packed with 40 passengers when it rolled down a steep embankment on Sogeri Rd, about 30km from the PNG capital Port Moresby.
The passengers were sitting crosslegged on the tray of the open-sided truck, which had only a light metal-framed canvas canopy.
Most of the victims were believed to be plantation labourers and their families, returning after a day of shopping in Port Moresby.
The road was the only avenue for Australian soldiers to get into battle on the Kokoda Track during World War II.
It is sealed but has many tight twists and turns, including an S-bend that makes first gear a necessity for heavy vehicles as it approaches a hydro-electricity plant.
A worker from the power plant, Jacob Kuso, said the truck was "packed" as it went up the hill.
"The engine cut off, causing the vehicle to roll off the side and down the 20m cliff, landing on the road at the foot of the hill," he said.
Some of the passengers panicked and jumped off as the truck was rolling down. It rolled three times, crushing several of the passengers who jumped out, before it stopped on the road below.
The witness said 13 of the passengers died at the scene, including a one-year-old baby who died in the arms of its grandmother.
Five more died in hospital.
Post Courier