Glasgow Bin Lorry Crash: Panic Inside The Cab

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By James Matthews, Scotland Correspondent

Frantic attempts were made to stop a Glasgow bin lorry as it killed six people last December, Sky News has learned.

Two men were inside the cab with the driver at the time, desperately trying to rouse him after he had collapsed.

The pair, who Sky News has chosen not to name, shouted to him that he was killing people and shook him.

But their efforts were hampered by a metal rail inside the cab, which separates the driver and the crew, who sit on a raised bench in the rear.

It presented an obstacle and inflicted injuries on at least one of the pair as they were jostled by the erratic movement of the vehicle.

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Gallery: Victims Of Glasgow Bin Lorry Crash

Jacqueline Morton, 51, who had left work early to collect her granddaughters

Stephenie Tait, 29, was a teacher at St Philomena's Primary school

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Gillian Ewing, 52, was also killed in the accident

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Jack Sweeney, 68, from Dumbarton, was killed along with his wife and granddaughter

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Erin McQuade, 18, with her grandmother Lorraine Sweeney, aged 69

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A succession of collisions meant the driver's weight shifted on the steering wheel which, in turn, caused sudden changes in the lorry's course.

There was an air-brake in the cab which slowly reduces speed but neither of the two crew was trained in how to drive the bin lorry and so neither knew how to bring it to a halt.

The vehicle only came to rest after crashing into the Millennium Hotel in Glasgow's George Square.

The two crew members first realised something was wrong after they had stopped to make the penultimate pick-up of their round outside the Primark store in Queen Street.

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Gallery: Images From The Scene In Glasgow After The Bin Lorry Crash

The lorry crashed into the Millennium Hotel at the top of Queen Street in the city centre

One police officer said it first mounted the pavement 300 metres down the street

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As the vehicle set off again, it swerved and then proceeded on its fatal journey, about 400 metres towards George Square.

The driver has been named as 58-year-old Harry Clarke and he has spoken of how the victims were on his mind "every minute of every day".

Following the incident, a blood sample was taken from him and he tested negative for drink-driving.

He has since reportedly said that he was diagnosed with a heart condition following the crash on 22 December last year.

Examination of on-board monitoring equipment showed it travelled at just over 20mph for roughly 40 seconds as the tragedy unfolded.

As a bin lorry driver, he was routinely required to insert a driver's tacho-card - a digital device that records a driver's details such as hours spent on the road and speed driven - into a dashboard slot.

He had not done so on the day of the crash.

Whether that was a factor or a minor irregularity that has no relevance to the crash will be a decision for Scotland's Crown Office.

The office is currently considering a police report on the incident. It will also decide whether or not a Fatal Accident Inquiry (FAI) will take place into the circumstances of the crash.

The GMB Union, which represents the two crew members on board the refuse truck, has told Sky News it would welcome an inquiry.

Cal Waterson, regional organiser of GMB Scotland, said: "I wouldn't like to speculate at the moment because we're still waiting for the police report to be published but, obviously, there was pressure being put on the accelerator.

"How would the crew have been expected to prevent that? That's something that I hope a Fatal Accident Inquiry would look into and be able to come up with some recommendations whereby we can put in some overriding device in the rear of the cab or something similar."

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