Video: Terrifying moment loose load smashes through windscreen on Shrewsbury road
A dash cam captures the terrifying moment a van's unsecured load smashes through a delivery driver's windscreen in Shrewsbury.
David Monaghan's life flashed before his eyes when driving towards the Heathgates Roundabout in Shrewsbury, when ladder platforms on the back of a van travelling on the opposite side of the road slid and crashed through his windscreen forcing him to act fast.
The accident happened last Friday and the dramatic footage has since been posted online.
Mr Monaghan today said he "still can't comprehend what could have happened".
He said: "I just remember hearing the real big crash when it happened. I was showered with glass.
"I was driving along the road approaching the roundabout when the van had just come off it, and two platforms on the back of it were sliding at the side, it carried on sliding and I knew it was going to hit me.
"We watched the footage back and between the platforms sliding off the edge and the impact I had two seconds to move. I was then showered in glass and there was a cut to the back of my head."
Other injuries he suffered included a pain in his back and neck from moving swiftly to avoid the oncoming platforms.
The 62-year-old from Eccles, Greater Manchester, was travelling alone when the accident happened.
Mr Monaghan, who works for delivery firm Wincanton, was on his way to deliver to a Co-op store at the time.
It was his own personal dash cam that captured the footage.
"I'm glad I have the camera, the amount of things I've witnessed driving over the years makes me realise how important it is, this proves that. I'm lucky I had it and now my employers are seriously considering every vehicle of theirs having one," he said.
The video which was posted on the HGV Dash Cam Footage Facebook page has been viewed more than 38,000 times.
The accident resulted in the closure of the road from 8am for around an hour.
Mr Monaghan vividly recalls the moment he was forced to come to a stop.
"I saw the platforms move and I ducked, I kept my right hand on the steering wheel, I still had my foot on the brake and my left foot was on the clutch, and I brought the vehicle to a stop. Somehow I had put the handbrake on but that's the one thing I can't remember doing," he said.
He added: "I'm still shaken from it now and I still can't believe it, I can't comprehend what could have happened because we all know what could've happened.
"I just want to say a big thank you to everyone who stopped to check I was okay and especially to the female paramedic who was first on the scene. I'm feeling very grateful considering what happened."
