Former firefighter comes to rescue of teens in M4 crash
A FORMER firefighter has described the moment he rushed to help three teenagers hurt in a crash which closed the M4 motorway.
A 15-year-old girl is in hospital with serious head and internal injuries after the crash between junctions 34 and 35 on Sunday.
The car’s 18-year-old male driver and a 16-yearold girl have less serious injuries.
Ian Morgan, 36, who was a firefighter in Gilfach Goch, had been travelling to the beach on Sunday afternoon when he saw the crash.
Police are appealing for witnesses after the white Toyota IQ2 left the carriageway, crashed into trees and overturned.
Mr Morgan said: “I was travelling about a mile behind the accident and noticed the traffic had slowed down.
“I was with my partner and friend going to the beach.
“There was a young girl already out on the hard shoulder so I pulled over. I ran over and could see a girl was on the floor. I made my way up the banking where the car was in situ.”
After prising open the door of the car, Mr Morgan was able to remove an 18-year-old boy from the driver’s seat.
He said: “There was a young boy in it at the time. I asked him where it hurt.
“He said there was a pain in his leg and I made the call to drag him out so I could gain access to the inside of the car.
“I made my way into the vehicle and the girl was slumped over, so I checked her neck.
“When she came around, she was frantic – she didn’t know where she was, she was in a complete state of shock. She was frightened for her head. As the car was overturned, she was on the roof.”
Mr Morgan, who now works as a material handler for Ford engines, said he felt he had to remove the girl from the car.
He said: “At this point she was getting very frantic and she wanted to get out of the car.
“I managed to calm her down and let her know I was from the fire service but she needed to get out of the car.
“It wasn’t very stable and the fire service hadn’t turned up, so I called over the police officers. They each held her legs and I was able to get her out as they did that.”
Mr Morgan said: “The engine was still running, the key was still in. One of the passers-by climbed over my legs to turn it off.
“It was a shock, I was a bit emotional afterwards as I’ve been away from the fire service for two years now. It was going through my head.
“You just switch into autopilot, I went back into work mode. The first port of call was to ensure she was breathing.”
Any witnesses are asked to call police on 101 quoting ref 1800121555.
Police would like to thank motorists and the surrounding community for their patience due to the M4 being closed for three hours, while investigation work was carried out.