THIS is the heroic moment a lorry driver used his trailer to rescue a man on the edge of a 30ft bridge over a busy motorway.
The lorry, which had been driving southbound on the M1, was forced to come to a stop close to Junction 29 on Saturday evening, following reports of concern for the welfare of a man on a bridge.
The driver of the lorry positioned his vehicle underneath the man in the dramatic clip
The heroic driver then clambered on top of his truck to try to save the man
He could be seen grabbing the man’s legs before he was eventually brought down to safety
As traffic ground to a halt, the lorry driver found himself next to the bridge, with the man’s legs visible from underneath from the overpass.
Footage shared on Facebook shows the lorry driver’s quick thinking, as he moves his truck directly beneath where the man is holding on from.
As he continues to remain on the edge of the overpass, the driver exits the vehicle and observes the situation.
Other crews in hi-vis jackets can be seen, while some people are visibly on the overpass, close to the man.
In the corner of the clip, the motorway displays an “incident” warning sign, as well as a 20mph speed limit, although traffic was currently at a standstill at this point.
Police can then be seen approaching the scene from the overpass while the heroic driver clambers on top of his own parked lorry to save the man.
Holding on to the man’s legs, the driver appears to try to pull him down onto the safety of his lorry roof but struggles to do so.
After holding him for multiple minutes, one police officer joins, also climbing onto the truck to hold onto his legs.
The video’s filmer can be heard saying that the situation had been going on for “15 minutes” while a second officer joins the group at the top of the lorry.
Eventually, three officers join the driver on the roof, trying to bring the man down from the potentially dangerous situation.
On the other side of the road, emergency crews blocked off all traffic.
After a struggle, the officers eventually manage to pull the man to safety onto the roof of the lorry, with a rope appearing to dangle, connecting the man to the overpass.
Police then deliberate with one another before lowering the man from the lorry with the rope still attached.
The man is then met with emergency crews once off the lorry, with the rope being removed from him.
As the clip ends, the man can be seen being led towards an ambulance, parked on the other side of the normally packed motorway.
DRIVER PRAISED AS ‘ANGEL’ AND ‘TOTAL HERO’
Comments under the social media post heavily praised the lorry driver for his efforts, with some calling him an “angel” and a “total hero”.
One person commented: “Lorry driver definitely the main hero here but also the police and ambulance staff as well.
“Hope someone can buy that driver a drink.”
Another added: “Not all heroes wear capes”.
In a statement, Derbyshire Police said: “We received a call concerning the welfare of a man on a bridge close to junction 29 of the M1 at about 6.30pm on Saturday 6 September.
“Officers were deployed to the scene and the man was led to safety with the help of a member of the public.
“Nobody was injured and the man was taken to hospital to be checked over.
“A stretch of the motorway was closed whilst emergency services dealt with the incident and was later reopened.”
Published: [#item_custom_pubDate]
