The driver was killed and several people were injured when a cement lorry crashed into a row of houses in north Belfast yesterday afternoon.
A man and a woman were taken from the rubble and are being treated in hospital, although they were not believed to be seriously hurt. A number of elderly people were also taken from the damaged homes and are being treated for shock.
It is believed the driver lost control of the lorry before the incident and the RUC has appealed for witnesses to come forward. After mounting the pavement on the Ligoniel Road, the lorry smashed garden fences and ripped through the front porches of five terrace houses, damaging up to three other houses before coming to a halt.
Ambulance and fire brigade crews said they were amazed that casualties were not greater. The emergency services had to operate with caution for a time as there were fears of a gas leak and the road was sealed off.
Ms Ethel Jeffrey lived in the end house of the terrace. "I thought at first there was an explosion," she said. "At the front, the window crashed in all round me. But lucky enough, although I was covered in glass, I wasn't hurt."
Her front door was ripped away by the truck and the facade of her home was badly damaged. "It was an awful shock", she said, while being cared for by neighbours.
The Housing Executive said it was working to rehouse families as a number of the homes might need to be demolished. "Our top priority is to ensure that each of them has a roof over their head for tonight and then to consider what their longer-term accommodation needs are," a spokesman said.