Man crushed to death by lorry as high winds cause havoc

In Leeds a 35-year-old man died and a woman was left fighting for her life when a lorry was blown over on top of them in the city centre.

Eyewitnesses said the pair were waiting to cross Neville Street opposite the Bridgewater Place skyscraper when the curtain-sided lorry was sent hurtling across the road onto them.

Nearby workmen used a digger to lift the lorry to enable the injured pair to be dragged free but West Yorkshire Police later confirmed a man from the Calderdale area had died.

Last night the 22-year-old woman, from Leeds, was still in a serious condition in hospital.

One witness, 19-year-old Mathew Hooks, climbed under the lorry to help get the pair out.

He said: “I pushed the guy out so other people could reach him and then got the woman out and held her hand until the paramedics arrived.”

Mr Hooks’s friend, Kieran Harris, also 19, said they were driving nearby when he saw the lorry turn over in his mirror.

“It looked like it went over with some real force and we ran straight over to help but didn’t realise there were people trapped underneath at first,” said Mr Harris.

The accident occurred just before 2pm and emergency services arrived within minutes.

Police cordoned off Neville Street between Sovereign Street and Great Wilson Street while Water Lane was also closed to traffic. Accusations were made that the design of the nearby Bridgewater Place building creates a wind tunnel effect in the area but the designers were unavailable for comment last night.

Elsewhere a lorry driver was killed when his vehicle blew over on the A1 near Pontefract.