POLICE have shared dashcam footage of the shocking moment when a lorry toppled onto an officer's car as he sat inside.
Sergeant John Easton was attending an earlier accident when his vehicle was struck.
The moment has now been shared in a dramatic tweet on social media.
Sergeant Easton had a lucky escape when a HGV fell onto his patrol car yesterday on the #A1 near East Linton.
— Road Policing Scotland (@polscotrpu) December 11, 2019
He said: "I took a deep breath, got out, checked that the driver of the lorry that had hit my vehicle was ok and got on the radio to colleagues for assistance." pic.twitter.com/Cq3DnlB4cI
Police were initially called to an incident just before 10.15am to a lorry which had fallen over on the westbound side of the A1 at the Tyne Bridge, near East Linton.
Sergeant John Easton, the officer in the vehicle, was carrying out scene protection at the time when a second lorry driving past the scene was blown over onto the front of his police car, just inches from where he was sitting (see video below, from Police Scotland).
Chief Superintendent Stewart Carle, head of Police Scotland’s Road Policing Unit, said on Twitter following the incident: “Relieved that one of my Road Patrol Sergeants was not seriously injured earlier today on A1 carrying out scene protection after RTCs. Another HGV passing his static location was blown over onto the patrol car!
“Sgt Easton, the driver, was as cool-as-a-cucumber when he broadcast on INTOP1: 'We need to close the A1 now: a lorry has just toppled onto my patrol car. And I just polished it yesterday!'
"I nearly spilt my mug of tea but was quickly reassured when told the BMW was a 64 plate!”
So, this has been my afternoon. Just shows how dangerous this job can be. The video isn’t pleasant viewing, but the officer sitting in it at the time escaped serious injury. #PickSixNumbers pic.twitter.com/d8ttpWKySI
— Pedro RPU (@PedroRpu) December 10, 2019
A police spokesman added: “Around 10.15am on Tuesday, a lorry collided with a police vehicle on the A1 northbound, between Dunbar and Haddington. There are no reports of any serious injuries.”
Sergeant John Easton said: “When I got to the scene, I jumped out the car, went across to check on the driver from the first lorry to make sure that he was ok, and he was already in another vehicle with one of our support drivers, so I said to them they needed to get off the bridge as it was too dangerous.
“As I struggled trying to get back to my car I had to hold onto the lorry to try and pull myself around. I had to get back into my car to then contact our control room and Traffic Scotland to close the bridge and the road.
“That’s at which point as I was speaking on the radio that the lorry started to fall over onto my car. As it happens, my favourite car in the RPU fleet.
“I took a deep breath, got out, and checked that the driver of the lorry that had hit my vehicle was ok before radioing for more assistance. Colleagues quickly arrived to help at the scene and we closed the road at the bridge.
“It could have been much worse but fortunately I walked away unscathed. I certainly won’t forget why it’s called the ‘Windy Bridge’ now.”
The section of road between Abbotsview Junction and Thistly Cross Roundabout was closed for a significant period of time, re-opening shortly before 8.50pm last night.
Another section of the A1, between Torness and Innerwick, was also closed between 7.45am and about 10pm after two lorries were blown over there earlier in the day.
Following the incidents, the A1 was shut to high-sided lorries yesterday from the Old Craighall A720 junction to as far as Berwick-upon-Tweed, reopening to all vehicles at about 10.20pm last night.
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