Lorry comes off road and smashes into pub and house

A lorry driver had to cut free after the HGV crashed into a house before hitting a pub.

The buildings turned into a pile of rubble in Bayston Hill near Shrewsbury after a crash this morning.

A lorry veered off the A49 Hereford Road at about 5.30am before hitting a home next to a takeaway.

It then ploughed into the Three Fishes pub, BBC News reports.

Both buildings were badly damaged and partially destroyed.

The emergency crews spent an hour freeing the driver who broke his leg. He was taken to hospital in Shrewsbury.

Shocking footage from the village shows buildings partially collapsed and turned into a pile of debris.

It is thought a family was inside the home at the time of the smash, but they were not injured.

James Duerden, landlord of the Three Fishes, told the broadcaster: ‘It was a great local pub, part of a community, and now we’re left with just a pile of rubble.’

He said a ‘good quarter’ of the pub had been lost as well as an upstairs bedroom and all his stock which was damaged by a power cut after the smash.

When arriving to assess the damage, he said he wasn’t expecting a ‘fully loaded articulated vehicle in the back of the pub.’

The pub said on social media it would have to close for the ‘foreseeable future.’

The post said: ‘So as you’re already aware a catastrophic accident has happened at the Three Fishes this morning.

‘It has caused severe structural damage to the premises. However everyone is ok.

‘The pub will be closed for the foreseeable future. Will post again in the coming week but trying to process everything right now.’

What has the lorry company said?

The HGV is owned by Chilton Bulk Transport based in Abertillery, south Wales.

It had been on its way to north Wales carrying glass.

The owner Steven Chilton said: ‘The last I heard was that he’d broken his leg. I’m waiting for an update from the hospital.

‘This is the first time we’ve had anything like this happen so it’s a bit of a shock to the system.

‘I don’t think this driver has ever had an accident working for us. He’s been with us five years, possibly going on ten.’

When asked about how much the crash was likely to cost the, he said ‘I don’t want to think about that, it’ll just make me ill.’

The A49 remains closed after the early morning incident.

West Mercia Police said it will likely remain shut for some time.

The force said: ‘We received a call around 5:20am this morning with a report of a road traffic collision on the A49 between Lower Pulley Lane and Sharpstone Lane.

‘Officers arrived to find a lorry had collided with two properties.

‘The driver sustained injuries not thought to be life threatening.’

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