Highway 401: Loose drive shaft damages 4 vehicles [Video]

Ontario Provincial Police say a metal drive shaft that fell off a commercial vehicle on Highway 401 near Kingston struck four other vehicles Tuesday morning.

The incident happened at around 9:30 a.m. in the westbound lanes between Highway 15 and Montreal Street, OPP Const. Robert Martell told CTV News Ottawa in an email. The drive shaft fell out of a cube truck, causing it to become disabled on the shoulder.

The metal shaft then rolled across live lanes of traffic, hitting other cars and causing damage including bent rims and flat tires. Three vehicles needed to be towed from the scene.

No one was hurt.

A Ministry of Transportation inspector was called. The company and the driver were given charges for commercial motor vehicle issues of operating an unsafe vehicle under the Highway Traffic Act, OPP said.

Traffic was briefly slowed on the highway while the damaged vehicles were removed.