Motorist's terror as brick flies into windscreen at 40mph

A TRAUMATISED motorist has told how she 'cheated death' after a brick flew off the back off a haulage truck and smashed through her windscreen as she drove along a busy city road.
Lanna Leslie has said she was very lucky to avoid a crashLanna Leslie has said she was very lucky to avoid a crash
Lanna Leslie has said she was very lucky to avoid a crash

Mum-of-three Lanna Leslie said she was “showered with glass” when the stone block shattered the window inches away from her head after it fell from a lorry carrying building supplies while she drove behind at 40 miles per hour.

However, Lanna, 38, revealed the driver of the lorry, thought to be owned by Neil Williams Haulage (NWH) failed to spot her signalling to them after the accident, despite the terrified driver frantically sounding her horn as she followed for over a mile.

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A spokeswoman for the firm, which operates across the country, said they are looking into the incident, but Lanna revealed she was “furious” that the driver failed to stop and take notice of the damage to her vehicle.

Lanna Leslie whose windscreen was smashed by a loose brick from a truck.Lanna Leslie whose windscreen was smashed by a loose brick from a truck.
Lanna Leslie whose windscreen was smashed by a loose brick from a truck.

Lanna, from Bonnyrigg, was on her way home as she drove along Sir Harry Lauder Road in the Portobello area of the Capital when the brick dropped through the windscreen of her Mercedes hatchback.

She recalled a moment of panic as the block came crashing through the glass, adding: “I didn’t even see it fall, it just came shattering through the window and showered me in glass.

“There was this huge smashing noise and then glass all over the inside of the car. I don’t know how I managed to keep my hands on the wheel.”

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She continued: “I was terrified, I was almost frozen, it fell inches away from my head. I understand how lucky I am, because that could have been so much worse.”

Lanna continued to pursue the lorry driver for around a mile and a half afterwards, desperately attempting to attract his attention by echoing her horn, before deciding to pull over onto the hard shoulder near The Jewel to assess the damage.

She said: “I just kept following the lorry, I was hammering the horn and trying to attract his attention but it felt like I had been completely ignored, there is absolutely no way that he didn’t hear me.”

Lanna continued: “I keep thinking about what could have happened if I had any of my kids in the car, how 
dangerous that could have been for them, it is just absolutely horrible to think about.”

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A spokeswoman for NWH group said the firm’s compliance officer was currently investigating the incident, adding: “We work very closely with our insurance provider and members of the public to investigate any accidents of this kind.”

Lanna has since reported the incident to police and is taking legal advice before deciding her next step.

A Police Scotland spokesman confirmed the accident had been reported.