Two pensioners are in serious condition after a lorry and four cars collided on one of the north-east’s busiest roads this afternoon.
Police, fire, and two air ambulances were called to the A96 Aberdeen to Inverness road, near the junction for Morgan McVeigh’s at Colpy, just after 2pm.
Specialist units from the Scottish Ambulance Service were also sent.
Photos from the scene show a green AW Jenkinson Forest Products lorry was heading towards Aberdeen when the collision happened.
A blue BMW, a silver Renault and a white Toyota were also involved.
Three fire crews from Insch, Inverurie and Huntly used cutting gear to free occupants from their vehicles. They left the scene at about 4pm.
A 74-year-old man and a 73-year-old woman, who were travelling in one of the cars, were taken to Aberdeen Royal Infirmary for treatment.
Hospital staff have described their condition as serious.
A96 reopens following investigation
The road was reopened shortly before 1.30am, almost 12 hours after the accident for collision investigations.
While the road was closed, officers photographed the wreckage and took measurements.
Police are urging eye-witnesses and drivers with dash-cam footage to come forward.
Sergeant Sarah Ritchie, from Inverurie’s road policing unit, said: “We are appealing to anyone who witnessed the crash take place to contact us. I am also keen to obtain any dash-cam footage from drivers in the area at the time.
“Information should be passed to 101 with reference number 1686 of January 12.”
CLEAR❗ ⌚01:25#A96 Culsalmond#A96 is now open at Culsamond from an earlier incident.#TravelwithCare@NETrunkRoads
— Traffic Scotland (@trafficscotland) January 13, 2023