Six people died and a seventh was in a critical condition after a “harrowing” crash involving six cars at the end of a Christmas night out in Birmingham.

Three men were killed when they were thrown out of their car while a black cab driver and his two passengers, a man and woman, died when their seven-seater flipped on to its side.

As police investigated whether speeding or adverse road conditions may have caused the accident, West Midlands ambulance service said it was “astonishing” that the number of fatalities was not higher.

A man and a woman escaped with only minor injuries from the wreckage of their car, which was almost completely crushed in the collision in an underpass south of Birmingham city centre shortly after 1am on Sunday.

The six victims, who police have formally identified, were travelling in two of the six cars involved in the collision.

Of the four men in one of the cars, three died when they were thrown into the road while the fourth remains in a critical condition in Queen Elizabeth hospital in Birmingham.



A further three cars were involved in a pile-up when they swerved to avoid the initial collision, the ambulance service said, although none of those occupants suffered serious injuries.

One of the victims was named on Sunday night as 33-year-old Imtiaz Mohammed, a taxi driver who was described as a loving, hardworking family man.

Facebook Twitter Pinterest Imtiaz Mohammed, 33, who was killed along with five other people in a multi-vehicle crash in Birmingham in the early hours of Sunday. Photograph: Nassrin Bibi/PA

Around 400 mourners paid tribute to Mohammed as news of his death spread through the Small Heath area of Birmingham where he lived with his wife, five daughters and one son.

His father Ikhtiar Mohammed, 65, said his “heart sank” as police knocked on his door at 5am on Sunday. “I knew there was something wrong, as soon as I saw them. I thought to myself, ‘which of my sons is hurt’, I just knew something was seriously wrong.”

Mohammed’s employer, Birmingham’s Castle Cars, confirmed his death and added: “He was loved and respected by all who worked with him and he will be greatly missed. Our thoughts and prayers are with his family and all the other families affected by this tragedy.”

Detectives were investigating on Sunday whether road conditions were a factor in the crash at 1.11am, eight hours after it was gritted.

Temperatures had dropped below freezing and visibility was reduced by fog at the time of the fatal accident, when many Christmas revellers were returning home on one of the busiest nights of the year.

In a press conference at West Midlands police headquarters, Supt Sean Phillips confirmed officers were investigating whether all those involved were wearing seatbelts and whether any of the vehicles exceeded the 40mph speed limit on the two-lane Lee Bank Middleway, where locals said there had long been a problem with racing.

Phillips said: “It is way too early to speculate on the causes of the accident. It will take some time to unpick the scene and understand exactly what’s happened. What I can say is that we’re looking at all sorts of conditions including road conditions – we’re aware the road was gritted at 5pm last night – but that’s just one factor of many we’re considering.

“There are a whole host of questions that I’m sure we all want answered – particularly, most importantly, the families of those involved. We need to go through the procedures with a dedicated team of specialist officers and as soon as we have that information it will be released as soon as possible to those involved.”

Phillips said police officers and paramedics would be offered specialist counselling after attending the “very harrowing” scene, which witnesses described as “absolute carnage”.

Facebook Twitter Pinterest A damaged vehicle. Photograph: Aaron Chown/PA

A local resident, who did not want to be named, said she rushed outside to try help after hearing a “massive bang” near the entrance to the underpass at the junction with Bristol Road.

She added: “I just couldn’t get it out of my mind [afterwards], it was haunting. There was lots of vehicles that were facing the wrong way. Clearly as more cars came along there had been accidents with people trying to stop in time.

“The main crash was absolutely awful. The taxi was upturned and caved in. I heard cutting and drilling, which was obviously the emergency services trying to get the victims out.”

She added: “It’s just so sad. I really do feel for them. I know at any time it’s bad, but it just seems so bad because it’s Christmas time. I just hope that the ones who had got out alive do recover soon and that the families are coping OK.”

Another witness, Lizzy Bowers, 18, from London, said: “It was the most horrible thing I have ever witnessed. It didn’t look good at all.”

She added: “Other cars behind had bumped into each other, probably from slamming their brakes on. Very upsetting, emergency service arrived almost minutes after and has been cordoned off with lots of police since.”

A passerby, who asked not to be named, said: “It is really horrific. When I saw the scene it reminded me of the pictures of Diana’s car crash.

Facebook Twitter Pinterest Police at the scene. Photograph: Aaron Chown/PA

“A man turned up here and said the police had knocked on his door this morning and told him one of his relatives had died in the crash. He didn’t know what had happened to the second person in the car so he was at the scene trying to find out. It must have been horrendous for him. People have told me there were bodies scattered across the carriageway.”

Another passerby, Wayne Hopkins, 64, from the Hall Green area of Birmingham, said: “People use this road as a racetrack, it’s so dangerous. I can’t believe this has happened. It’s awful, especially as it’s so close to Christmas.”

Michelle Brotherton, from the ambulance service, said her staff had dealt with 13 patients in total. As well as those who died and the man in a critical condition, four people were taken to Heartlands Hospital where their condition is believed to be non-life threatening. A further two patients were “discharged on scene”.



