There’s over 15km of cars banked up on Sydney’s M4 for a second day running after a truck and eight cars crashed. There’s over 15km of cars banked up on Sydney’s M4 for a second day running after a truck and eight cars crashed.... Sydneysiders who drive past a notorious off-ramp every morning in the city’s west weren’t surprised to hear it was the location of a horrific crash this morning that left one man dead and several others injured. Drivers heading in to Sydney’s CBD were told to completely avoid the M4 for a second day running after a fatal crash involving a truck and 10 cars. Emergency services re-opened all east and westbound lanes just after 11am today after the pile-up closed the motorway for more than five hours. The crash claimed the life of a 36-year-old Irish tradie from Wentworthville, and several others received attention from paramedics on-site. Five people were taken to hospital with various injuries, police said. The crash happened about 5.50am, when a truck and 10 cars crashed at the Church Street off-ramp at Mays Hill. Drivers who pass the notorious off-ramp every day took to social media to rant about the exit. The Mays Hill off-ramp is the last place drivers can exit before paying the M4 toll. Drivers often try and jump the queue and cut in before having to pay the toll, commuters said. “Should be a smash repair centre at that intersection because there’s probably one a day there now since the toll was reintroduced,” Scott Morris wrote. “That exit before people get charged toll needs attention. Can’t believe they’ve let it get to this. They’ve known about these issues for long enough,” Lachlan Kurosaka added. “This was bound to happen at the Church St off-ramp. Does it really have take someone to die for something to be done about it??! Apparently so. So sad for the family who have lost a loved one,” Ari Grimekis said. Rod Fisher, who drives past the ramp Monday to Friday, said he “wasn’t surprised” the crash had happened. The Party Games newsletter Get your political briefing from news.com.au's political editor Samantha Maiden. Sign up The Party Games newsletter Success! Check your inbox for details. See all newsletters Others described it as a “pinch point” on the M4. City-bound traffic was banked back more than 15km, with motorists being diverted off the crucial route into the city. Opposition transport and roads spokeswoman Jodi McKay told The Daily Telegraphthe government should’ve already fixed the ramp. “It’s well known by the government this is a very dangerous intersection because more people are avoiding the toll,” Ms McKay said. “It’s been a dangerous intersection from day one when the toll was introduced. “I think the government are aware of the number of crashes there and they need to look at how this intersection can be made much safer when you clearly have an issue with people from Western Sydney trying to avoid the toll.” Ambulance Inspector Andrew Wood told Sydney radio station 2GB that four teams of paramedics had been deployed to the scene of the crash. “It was an extremely distressing scene for all emergency services on arrival,” he said. “There was debris and the accident was actually spread out over approximately 200 metres.” In a statement after the crash, NSW Police advised motorists to avoid the area as it closed the M4 so officers from the Crash Investigation Unit could examine the scene. Traffic was being diverted onto the Great Western Highway around the crash site, with the Burnett Street eastbound on-ramp also closed. Horrific scene one dead multiple injured in M4 crash this morning near Parramatta.. 8 cars and a truck involved just before 6am City bound all lanes blocked traffic diverted its a mess. @10NewsFirstSyd @10Daily pic.twitter.com/mZLXABcGav — Steve Hart (@SteveHart10News) May 8, 2019 Police warned that traffic remains heavy and driver’s should expect significant delays. It comes after a truck rolled after colliding with a heavy vehicle yesterday morning — again sparking heavy traffic and delays. Traffic was banked up for about 9km after the crash on the motorway in Greystanes, which closed two lanes after 6am. Citybound traffic is queued about 15kms, back to Huntingwood. Avoid the area. https://t.co/U0nupTYLl1 — Live Traffic Sydney (@LiveTrafficSyd) May 8, 2019<doc-sep>Here's what you need to know this morning. Chaos on M4 A fatal crash involving a truck and four cars on the M4 near Parramatta has left one person dead and motorists stranded. Citybound lanes and ramps near Mays Hill including on the Cumberland Highway, Great Western Highway and Burnett Street were closed after a crash at Mays Hill this morning. David Wright from the Transport Management Centre said it was the "worst possible scenario" for morning peak traffic on the M4, one of the biggest arteries leading into Sydney from the west. Commuters were advised to expect significant delays as motorists were being diverted through James Ruse Drive. Gunshots in Sydney's west NSW Police said the shooting appeared to be targeted. ( ABC News NSW Police are investigating gunshots fired into a Sydney west home in the early hours of this morning. Authorities said around 12:15am police were called to a home in Glenmore Park after they received reports shots were fired into a home. Initial investigations suggested the shooting was targeted. No homeowners were injured in the shooting. Rain fails to break drought The Agriculture Minister is considering another drought relief package for farmers. ( Supplied: Lisa Reynolds Even if you enjoyed some of the rain across the state last week, it was not enough to break the drought gripping 98.6 per cent of NSW. Although parts of the state received between 25 and 100 millimetres of rain at the end of last week, Agriculture Minister Adam Marshall said "unrelenting conditions" continued to affect the Northern Tableland and the state's north-west. "[It's] a big part of the reason why at the moment the Government's working on another assistance package for our farmers," he said. The Government's drought relief fund concludes at the end of the financial year but Mr Marshall said he was devising a new one. Powerhouse life extended The Powerhouse Museum was due to be closed early 2020. ( ABC News: Mhairi McClymont The CEO of the Powerhouse Museum says it's likely the museum will continue operating well into next year. The doors of the Ultimo museum were due to close in January 2020 ahead of its move to Parramatta in 2023. Chief executive Lisa Havilah said discussions were underway with the Government over a possible delay to this date. "There's potential that it may stay open longer into 2020 but that's a decision for government," she said. Ghost children in alleged fraud Three men and 15 women were arrested for alleged fraud. ( Supplied: NSW Police A childcare provider allegedly filed claims for non-existent children and bought the identities of parents as a way to defraud millions of dollars from the Government. According to its website, Red Roses Family Day Care promised to provide "high-quality, home-care options for children between the ages of birth to 12 years" so the child "can reach their fullest potential". But the family-run company allegedly made fraudulent claims worth up to $5 million from Government childcare programs, including the Commonwealth's Child Care Subsidy Scheme. Red Roses Family Day Care allegedly filed claims for children who never existed and the ABC understands some parents allegedly sold their identities to help the company qualify for the subsidies.<doc-sep>
A man died and traffic banked up for at least 15 kilometres following a crash involving 10 cars and a beer truck on a major motorway in Sydney’s west during Thursday morning’s peak. The collision happened on the M4 at the Church Street off-ramp in Mays Hill near Parramatta just before 6am. Paramedics treated multiple patients at the accident scene. They included a 36-year-old Wentworthville man, who could not be revived after a truck laden with beer kegs smashed into his ute. All city-bound lanes on the M4 and surrounding roads were closed following the crash, leading to a 15-kilometre-long peak hour traffic jam. The closures also took in the Cumberland Highway, Great Western Highway and Burnett Street. Roads were re-opened by 11am. UPDATE : The driver killed this morning in the 10 vehicle crash on the M4 was a young tradie in his 30s just on his way to work sadly he won't be going home to his fiancé tonight #devastating @10NewsFirstSyd @10Daily pic.twitter.com/YQ6A0BuBzv — Steve Hart (@SteveHart10News) May 8, 2019 “It was an extremely distressing scene for all emergency services on arrival,” NSW Ambulance’s Andrew Wood told 2GB radio. “There was debris and the accident was actually spread out over approximately 200 metres.” NSW Police also say only 10 of the 11 vehicles involved in the crash stopped. “We want to speak with this driver to find what they know about the events leading up to the crash,” Inspector Katie Orr said. “We also want to speak with any drivers who may have witnessed the crash and left the area or have relevant dash-cam footage.” Investigators aren’t suggesting the missing driver caused the crash but hope they can provide additional information. Earlier, David Wright from the Transport Management Centre told the ABC it was the “worst possible scenario” for morning peak traffic on the M4, one of the biggest arteries leading into Sydney from the west. Thursday was the second day of traffic chaos in Sydney. There were also long delays during Wednesday morning’s peak after a truck rolled after colliding with a heavy vehicle on the M4 at Greystanes. Traffic was banked up for about nine kilometres after that crash, which closed two lanes on the motorway after 6am. Thursday’s fatality also follows the death of a 20-year-old man in a crash in NSW’s central west on Wednesday afternoon. Police believe the ute he was travelling in left the road at Forbes and hit a tree, killing him and leaving the 24-year-old driver fighting for life. The driver is in Sydney’s Westmead Hospital in a critical condition. -with AAP