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I was driving down the A3 in Surrey early this afternoon, just south of Guildford - Godalming turnoff, when I saw an artic truck suddenly swerve from the nearside lane to the outside lane and then crash into the central barrier and stop. I was 2 cars behind it. Stopped, hazards on, then saw something lying in the road. Thought it must be a motorcycle as def not a car. Jumped out of the car and ran up the road to see what was going on, couldn't see a bike just something in the road so thought at first it must be a deer or some other animal. Got close and then realised it was a man in the road. Head bashed in, blood all over and, macarbrely, ankle torn off with a white trainer on it. I just new he was dead. Bloke in his 50's I would say. Didn't want to look too closely. Other people appear - maybe they'd been there all along, I don't know. Weird the way no one knows what to do in that situation. Someone said first aid. Hit by a 40 ton truck at 50mph- there's not much call for that.
Truck driver, clearly traumatised, tumbles out of cab, and says the dead guy had deliberately run from the hard shoulder in front of him. The driver said he'd looked at the guy the as he ran into the path of the truck. No accident. Suicide. His car - the victim that is - was on the hard shoulder. All this was before the emergency servicies arrived. I looked in the car very clean, brand new, looked like a hire car. Truck driver sat crying on the road side. Apologising for disrupting our journeys!!! 'He just ran out, there was nothing I could do' he kept saying to me. The guy was very traumatised. Still no one seems to know what to do... Take the driver away from the dead body, just keep talking to him. He wants to ring his wife but then says he's too upset to talk to her. I say should I ring your employer let them know whats going on no he say's.
By now just listening out for the sirens. That was a very long wait. Though prob only 5 mins. Police, Ambulance do what they're trained to do, thank god.
And I stand there reflecting on how desperate someone must be to be driving down the A3, stop their car on the hard shoulder - and lock it!!! - and then jump out in front of a 40 ton truck travelling at 60mph.
I'm staying home tmrw and hugging everyone I love. My life isn't perfect. Like everyone I've got worries and concerns. But that guys family will have 2 police officers knocking on their door tonight. And their lives will never be the same again.
My thought's are with the family of someone very desperate.
Life hangs by a thread. Cherish those you love.