Marine pulls two children and injured woman from M5 car crash
A marine has described how he helped to pull a woman and two children from a car crash after a lorry collided with oncoming traffic.
A woman and two children were hospitalised with life-threatening injuries after a major collision on the M5 in south Gloucestershire, and four people were killed.
Alex Morgan, a marine from Plymouth, said he was on his way to a wedding in Coventry when he saw a lorry in a ditch and an overturned car.
He told Somerset Live: “On approaching the vehicle I could already hear two children screaming and when looking inside they were both in the back suspended upside down from their seat belts.
”They were both fully conscious with no initial signs of serious bleeding or injury, so I unclipped the little girl's seatbelt and carried her out as others worked to extinguish the front of the vehicle.“
He then managed to pull out the little boy and an injured woman.
Avon and Somerset Police confirmed four people had died in the crash.
The lorry driver was taken to hospital to be checked over as a precaution.
Amer Hamed, a cardiologist who was in a car travelling ”10 to 20 seconds behind“ the crash, told the BBC: ”There was a lorry involved and at least two other cars. One was absolutely destroyed and another had flipped over.“
He said he also tried to help the injured.
Superintendent Simon Ellis said: ”Emergency service personnel have been working tirelessly at the scene in harrowing conditions and I'd like to praise them for the work they've done and are still doing.
“I'd also like to thank the members of the public who courageously went to the aid of those involved in this collision and in some cases rescued them from their vehicles.
”Our priority is to ensure the victims' next of kin are notified and supported, as well as the ongoing management of the scene, and this important work is ongoing.“
He added: ”We know this has been extremely disruptive to many people but we've had to prioritise the rescue and recovery operation and ensure we carry out a thorough investigation at the scene.
“This is painstaking work.”
Agencies contributed to this report.
