A soldier fighting for his life after being
injured in a truck accident at a Sydney military reserve is just 21.
The young man was one of 18 army personnel
who were injured when the troop carrier overturned during a defence exercise at
Holsworthy Barracks on Monday morning.
The open-top truck careered off the side of
the road and rolled several times, throwing the soldiers from the vehicle.
Two men were airlifted to hospital,
including the 21-year-old who remains in a critical condition at Liverpool
Hospital, a hospital spokesman told AAP.
Three men, aged 19 and one aged 29, were
described as being stable.
The spokesman said five other soldiers had
been released from the hospital overnight.
A spokeswoman for the Department of Defence
was unable to confirm the condition of the remaining soldiers or the nature of
their injuries.
More information will be released later on
Tuesday, she said.
Metropolitan Crash Investigation Unit
Commander Inspector Steve Blair has suggested speed may have caused the
Mercedes-Benz Unimog multi-purpose truck to roll.
He said the truck was travelling in convoy
with a support vehicle carrying equipment at the time of the crash.
Defence Force Association executive
director Neil James said the model of truck involved was old and overdue for
replacement.
'In their day they were an absolutely
superb vehicle, but for a vehicle introduced in the mid-1980s they're getting
near the end of their service life,' he told ABC radio on Tuesday.
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