Boyolali, Central Java. At least eight people died after chain-reaction vehicle crashes on a toll road in the Central Java town of Boyolali on Friday. Police said the pile-up involved eight vehicles of mostly trucks.

"Two people died en route to the hospital, six others died instantly at the scene," Boyolali Traffic Police Head Adjunct Comr. Herdi Pratama said.

The accident began when a truck carrying steel iron bars slammed into a passenger car allegedly because of overloading and brake failure.

The crash triggered a chain reaction as many vehicles were parked along the roadside, Boyolali Police Chief Petrus Silalahi said.

After the first collision, the passenger car hit a fuel tanker, and crashes continued to include a delivery van and a car hauler, Petrus said.

The fuel tanker driver was resting inside the truck when rear-end collision occurred and caused another crash.

“I woke up to the crash and saw loads from the delivery van in front of me scattered,” the driver who introduced himself as Suratno said.

"I saw the victims from the passenger car and just couldn't stand any longer. Most of the casualties must have come from the passenger car," he added.

The police released footage taken from a security camera at the scene showing a speeding truck hit the rear-end of the passenger car just before dawn when motorists packed a nearby rest area for Ramadan pre-dawn meals. 

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