A MECHANIC working for Askam-based Furness Cars and Commercial witnessed a shocking fatal motorway collision which saw a Highways England traffic officer lose his life.

A recovery truck from Furness Cars had been called to the M6 southbound between junctions 38 and 37 to deal with an initial collision involving two vehicles. The Evening Mail understands two Highways England traffic officers were also on the scene to assist. 

As the recovery of the two vehicles was under way, a second collision occurred involving one of the traffic officers and a third vehicle, which is understood to have been travelling past. 

A spokesperson for Highways England said: “Our thoughts are with the family, friends, and colleagues of the Highways England traffic officers who were involved in a collision on the M6 in Cumbria on Sunday 21 February while responding to an incident. 

“One officer tragically lost his life and the other officer has suffered serious injuries.”

Gary Grieve, company director for Furness Cars, said his employee was understandably shaken after witnessing the incident. 

Mr Grieve said: "We had one member of staff there, he is ok, not injured, but he is very shook up."

Sean Toms, a Shrewsbury-based recruitment consultant, was first at the scene after the traffic officer was injured. 

Mr Toms, who administered first aid at the side of the motorway, said he was surprised at the length of time it took for the emergency services to arrive. 

He said: "I'm not being critical, they do a difficult job, but I was surprised it took them so long to get there. It took the police maybe 10 to 12 minutes, then a further 12 minutes for the ambulance to get there.

"We gave first aid to the gentleman who was badly injured but there was no pulse."

The southbound carriageway was closed for almost nine hours after the fatal crash. Mr Grieve said the incident highlighted a growing level of concern about the safety of individuals working on the motorways. 

Mr Grieve said: "There is a campaign at the moment in the recovery industry which aims to get motorists to move over if they are passing a recovery on the hard shoulder. Unfortunately it does happen a lot and our staff do tell us about near misses on a regular basis. It makes our job very difficult."

The Evening Mail has contacted Cumbria Police for a response to Mr Toms' claims.

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