'Horror scene' after woman hit by lorry
Shoppers and businesses described a scene of 'horror' after a women was hit by a lorry on a busy road.
The pedestrian was critically injured after being hit at a set of traffic light on High Bullen in Wednesbury at around 10.40 am yesterday.
Traffic came to a standstill for around half an hour in the town centre after the accident.
She was taken to the Queen Elizabeth Major Trauma Centre in Birmingham.
Ben Willmore, a sales man at Gemini Carpets opposite the scene of the accident, said: "An elderly lady was run over, so we called 999. The scene was a real horror story.
"She was in her 60s, we were worried about getting an ambulance there because it's a busy junction.
"The air ambulance arrived really quickly and there were lots of police there straight away."
The crossing is the same place where 14-year-old James Birks, from Wednesbury, was struck on April 24 last year while out playing with friends. That accident left him unable to speak or walk unaided, but he is now back home recovering with his family.
Another witness, sales consultant, Jazz Bal, said: "She was still talking and people were helping her, one of them looked like a doctor.
"It's a really busy junction, a lot of traffic goes up High Bullen. This isn't the first time there has been an accident ."
Ambulance crews immediately started treating the woman at the scene, before taking her to hospital.
West Midlands Ambulance Service spokeswoman Claire Brown said: "The doctor travelled in the ambulance to help continue treatment en route to hospital where, upon arrival, the woman was said to be in a critical condition.
"The lorry driver, a man, was checked over by ambulance staff but was uninjured."
A delivery driver trying to get into the town, who did not want to be named, said: "The police were forcing traffic around a one-way road.
"Two ladies said it was absolutely blocked for about half an hour in the town centre.
"They said that they thought an old lady had been crushed by a lorry."
Traffic soon began moving again after one side of the road in the direction of the junction 9 of the M6 for Wednesbury was reopened at around 1pm.
Any witnesses to the incident should contact Sergeant Tim Rogers as soon as possible on 101.
