Victim died at side of road after being hit by a truck

A HOUSEHOLDER has told how he saw the shocking aftermath of a man being knocked down and killed by a lorry on the A52.

The witness, who did not want to be named, saw the scene from the window of his home, a few metres from the road at Borrowash.

The householder, who lives in Victoria Avenue, said: "I was about to go out walking my dog and saw bright lights shining on the side of my house. It was the headlights of the lorry, which had pulled into a side road.

"The driver got out and he looked very shaken. The man was lying in a gutter. The police arrived soon afterwards."

One motorist who passed the incident and contacted the Derby Telegraph said he saw a man lying on the road in the inside lane.

He said: "There was a white van parked to the side of the inside lane and a man lying there.

"There were three ambulances there as well."

The incident, at just after 7am yesterday, left rush-hour drivers jammed in miles of traffic queues.

The collision caused part of the road to be closed, causing huge tailbacks around Derbyshire for nearly four hours.

Police and ambulance services were called but the man died at the scene.

Officers then closed the Derby-bound lane while the accident was cleared.

The man has not been named but is understood to be from Borrowash.

At their height, queues stretched for more than three miles along roads leading from Borrowash, causing traffic problems as far as Breaston and Risley.

The road eventually opened again at around 10.45am.

Mick Seller, Derby City Council assistant director for children and young people, was caught in the hold-up.

He said his journey to Derby from his home normally took 30 minutes but after two-and-a- half hours stuck on the A52 between junction 25 and the accident scene he still hadn't reached work.

Mr Seller said: "At times we were only moving about 100 yards in half an hour. But there was no point in getting irate or stressed because there was nothing that could be done."

Tiler Brian Davis, 52, was travelling from Eastwood on his way to work in Borrowash.

He said: "The trip normally takes 20 minutes but I was in the car for more than an hour- and-a-quarter.

"We didn't even go on the A52. All the roads around it were choked with cars."

A police spokesman said anyone with information about the incident should contact police on 0345 123 33 33.