A number of emergency crews and passersby worked in tandem to assist a young man trapped his car on Sunday after it collided with a truck on the Sturt Highway in what first responders described as a "traumatic scene" for all involved.
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Emergency services were called just after 10am to reports of a two-vehicle crash on the Sturt Highway, with police, Fire and Rescue NSW, paramedics and the Volunteer Rescue Association arriving minutes later.
The high-impact crash involved a 19-year-old male driving what appeared to be a Holden Commodore ute, and a man believed to be in his 50s in a B-double truck.
The two vehicles collided just west of the Barbeques Galore roundabout at the intersection with the Olympic Highway.
The young man was trapped for almost 20 minutes before being freed, a spokesperson for NSW Police confirmed, with his car in such bad condition it was almost unrecognisable.
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Junee woman Debie Heritage was one of the first on scene, driving past just seconds after the collision.
She said the young man was unconscious and "in a very bad way".
"I was telling him that it was okay and that help was coming and that he was loved," Miss Heritage said.
"I have kids and if someone was to run up to my child in that situation I would want them to watch them and hold their hand and tell them that they're cared for."
After a few minutes a single ambulance officer arrived - later followed by more - and Miss Heritage assisted them with the teenager's treatment.
The teenager was initially taken to Wagga Base Hospital and later transferred to Canberra by rescue helicopter for further treatment.
Miss Heritage wants his family to know "their son wasn't alone".
As of last night the teenager was in a serious condition with serious head injuries, with no further information available.
The truck driver was taken for mandatory testing and assessed as stable at the scene, but later went to Wagga Base Hospital with chest pain, likely from the impact, according to Riverina Police District Inspector Corrie Ward.
The B-double was fully loaded and carrying empty glass bottles at the time of the crash.
Inspector Ward said the crime scene officers had processed the scene as of 3.30pm, and the crash investigation unit had not been called out.
NSW Ambulance's Riverina duty operations manager Inspector Eamonn Purcell, who attended the crash site, said "all emergency service workers worked well on the scene and the teamwork was extremely appreciated" in what was a "traumatic scene".
The highway was closed for more than six hours as the crash site was inspected and eventually cleared, reopening after 4pm.
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