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Woman feared she would plunge off bridge in crash

Lewis Adams
BBC News, Essex
Nura Newman Nura Newman has brown hair and sunglasses on top of her head. She is smiling in front of a wide river at night. Large buildings and boats are illuminated.Nura Newman
Nura Newman thought she was going to die in the collision on the bridge

A woman feared she would plunge off the Queen Elizabeth II bridge and die after a lorry collided with her car.

Nura Newman was using the Dartford Crossing, which links Essex and Kent, when her vehicle was spun perilously close to the edge on Thursday.

It led to significant traffic after the bridge, which reaches 61m (200ft) in height, was shut for 15 hours.

"The lorry spun me, it jack-knifed and I thought I was going to go over the barrier," Miss Newman told the BBC.

"I thought I was going to die; I just saw the end of my road."

Steve Lowe A silver car with its bonnet partially wedged beneath a lorry trailer. Its front is crumpled and a door is open. The air bags have gone off and there is debris on the road surface.Steve Lowe
Miss Newman said it was a "miracle" that she walked away from the incident

The 28-year-old had been driving from her home in Thurrock, Essex, to Crawley in West Sussex at about 11:05 BST.

Eyewitnesses said the lorry collided with the rear of her car as its driver changed lanes.

"Before I knew it, the airbags deployed and I couldn't see anything," said Miss Newman.

"I was petrified, my brain couldn't keep up with what was going on."

The bridge reopened at 02:00 on Friday after work to repair its barriers and road surface.

Widespread queues had built up east of London, with eight-mile (12.8km) congestion on the M25 clockwise and gridlock near Lakeside shopping centre.

Eddy Keiller This picture taken from a bridge above a road shows three different roads, all dual-carriageway, gridlocked. Cars, vans and lorries are top to tail queuing during dusk. The queues are huge and cover the entire picture.Eddy Keiller
Lengthy queues built up near Lakeside shopping centre in West Thurrock

Miss Newman, who was treated at Basildon Hospital for bruising, said it was "surreal" to see the impact of the collision.

"I was very shaken up and still am," she explained. "It's petrifying and I feel for everyone who was held up in all of that.

"It's a major inconvenience for everyone involved, but I appreciate everyone's patience."

The sales manager thanked emergency crews and Steve Lowe, 67, who stopped to help her.

Mr Lowe said: "I was pretty shaken up because I didn't know if I was going to be caught up in it myself."

But he praised Miss Newman for staying calm in what he called a "scary situation".

She added: "Everyone was shocked looking at the pictures that I managed to survive.

"I had someone watching over me that day."

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