IT proved an unlucky, yet lucky, day for Stourbridge businessman John Jackson yesterday when the lorry sent to recover him and his broken down van careered into the central reservation of a busy dual carriageway - crushing both the van and recovery vehicle.
Mr Jackson, of Oldswinford, who runs a roller shutter doors firm which takes him all over the UK and the world, called the AA after his Iveco Daily company van broke down on the M40 just past Banbury after a trip to London.
After a wait of around two hours - he and his son, who had popped along for the ride, were back on their way home.
But just ten minutes from the doorstep, the recovery vehicle sent to rescue them spun out of control and smashed into the central reservation and ended up on its side - taking the recovered van with it.
Mr Jackson said: "It was pretty scary. My face was next to the tarmac."
He told how both he and his son were left hanging upside down in their seatbelts but they managed to escape the battered cab by kicking the windscreen out. And he said they also helped to free the lorry driver, who was trapped.
Mr Jackson believes a wheel came off the vehicle - sending it into a spin.
The incident, which happened at around 3pm, left the busy road closed for a couple of hours.
Self-employed Mr Jackson says both he and his son suffered cracked ribs in the drama and his van was left a mangled wreck but he added that they were lucky to be alive.
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