The accident occurred about 6.45pm about five kilometres north of Brocklehurst and, according to Orana Local Area Command duty officer Inspector Mitch Croyston, it was a miraculous escape for both drivers.

Traffic along the Newell Highway was diverted either through Narromine or on the Old Mendooran Road with the highway closure lasting almost 24-hours.

The driver, who was evacuated to Sydney, was driving a north-bound transport and the impact of hitting the livestock transport, heading south, reduced the prime mover to just a wheelbase and was almost unrecognisable.

The driver was thrown from his disintegrating cab and landed on the highway where he rolled for a short distance before being pinned on the ankle by his jack-knifed rear trailer.

“He is incredibly lucky to be alive,” Inspector Croyston said.

The driver of the south-bound cattle truck, which was also extensively damaged around the cabin area, was reported to have had a small wound on his head and be suffering from shock.

Inspector Croyston said 30 cattle in the transport were either killed on impact or had to be euthanised by a veterinarian soon after the incident.

The cows would have been valued around the $30,000 mark, going on prices at yesterday’s Dubbo cattle sale.

According to Inspector Croyston, the highway was still closed at 5.30pm yesterday and, while the clean-up process was almost completed, he could not give a time when the highway would reopen.

It was the second major accident involving two B-double semi-trailers in almost as many weeks.

On January 24, about 4am, the Newell Highway was closed in both directions between Mitchell Highway and Tomingley Road after the collision between two B-doubles - about 24 kilometres south of Dubbo.

In that accident one driver died, while the other driver had minor injuries and refused transport to hospital.