A sanitation worker loading trash into the back of a garbage truck was critically injured Thursday morning when a Dodge rammed the stopped truck and pinned him.

And doctors told Cobb County police they will amputate both of the man’s legs, according to Channel 2 Action News.

The wreck happened in the 5300 block of Austell Road, between Veterans Memorial Highway and Perkerson Mill Road, the television station reported.

Police are trying to determine why the Dodge’s driver was distracted and did not see the truck, which had its lights flashing.

The injured man, who works for American Disposal Services, was taken to Grady Memorial Hospital, where he was in critical but stable condition and undergoing surgery Thursday afternoon.

The Dodge’s driver was taken to WellStar Cobb Hospital with injuries police said were not serious.

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Amy Bielawski, who runs Hare-Brained Productions, prepares to work at a Fall Festival in Stone Mountain on Oct. 4, 2025. Bielawski is worried she may not be able to afford health care through Georgia Access when subsidies expire. (Arvin Temkar/AJC)

Credit: Arvin Temkar/AJC