One dead and two injured in truck collision on S12 expressway near Lublin
A collision between two heavy trucks on the S12 and S17 expressway near Jakubowice Konińskie left one driver dead and two people hospitalized, shutting the route toward Warsaw until Saturday morning.
Collision on the Lublin bypass
A fatal collision between two heavy commercial vehicles took place on the expressway bypass around Lublin in eastern Poland on Friday night, 2 October 2026. The crash occurred at approximately 21:40 on the concurrent S12 and S17 expressway route between the Lublin Czechów and Lublin Rudnik junctions, in the vicinity of Jakubowice Konińskie within the Lublin Voivodeship. Two heavy trucks collided while travelling along the roadway, causing one of the vehicles to catch fire immediately after the collision. Emergency responders, including fire brigades, medical personnel, and police units, arrived promptly at the location to extinguish the fire and initiate rescue measures. The driver of one of the heavy trucks died on the scene as a result of the incident, while two other people sustained injuries and were transported to nearby hospitals for treatment.
Emergency operations and motorway management
The collision and resulting vehicle fire caused the complete blockage of the expressway carriageway in the direction of both Warsaw and Radom. Police officers and the state prosecutor began an on-site investigation to clarify the circumstances leading to the fatal incident, securing physical evidence and evaluating the wreckage. With travel entirely halted along the affected stretch, highway authorities took operational measures to assist motorists who became trapped in the traffic queue behind the collision site.
Preliminary findings indicate that one truck driver died on the scene, and two people were transported to hospitals.
To alleviate the buildup of stranded vehicles, road management opened an emergency gate situated at the 60.6-kilometre mark (kilometre 60 plus 600 metres) of the route. Highway workers began directing trapped passenger cars and commercial vehicles through this emergency passage at 23:10. In addition, highway operators displayed real-time warnings and closure notices on electronic variable message signs across the regional expressway network to alert oncoming traffic.
- Two heavy trucks collide on the S12 expressway near Jakubowice Konińskie, triggering a vehicle fire.
- GDDKiA estimates a four-hour closure and routes traffic through Lublin via the Lublin Rudnik junction.
- Emergency personnel begin releasing trapped vehicles through the emergency gate at kilometre 60.6.
- Emergency crews finish on-site clearance operations and reopen the expressway toward Warsaw.
Traffic diversions and route clearance
To handle the regional traffic flow during the closure, the General Directorate for National Roads and Motorways (GDDKiA) organized dedicated diversion routes around the incident area. Long-distance and regional drivers travelling toward Warsaw and Radom were diverted off the expressway at the Lublin Rudnik junction and guided through the municipal road network of the city of Lublin. An early status report released by GDDKiA at 21:54 estimated that the traffic obstruction was expected to persist for approximately four hours while emergency operations progressed.
Specialized response teams and forensic personnel worked at the scene for several hours, clearing the burned lorry, removing the second damaged vehicle, and clearing accident debris from the road surface. Emergency services officially completed all on-site clearance operations at approximately 04:00 on Saturday morning, 3 October 2026. Once the carriageway was deemed safe for transit, the S12 and S17 expressway was reopened to regular vehicular traffic. Following the conclusion of rescue and recovery operations, police authorities issued an appeal to all motorists, urging them to slow down, ease off the accelerator, and exercise heightened caution when driving.
