‘I tried to avoid catastrophe’
bydangerousdrivingandcausing death by driving without due care and attention and is being tried by a jury.
Jurors have heard transcripts of Balan's interviews with the police in the aftermath of the tragedy.
He told officers he deliberately missed the turn-off onto thesliproadasheheardanoise inhislorryandfearedhiscargo may have come loose.
Balan told police: "I heard the noise and continued in order to find somewhere to reassure the safety of my load. I heardthenoise.Ididn'twantto turn left and cause problems. I didn't indicate, I continued.
"I just slowly, slowly continued. After I heard the noise I didn't accelerate anymore, I just let it go forward.
"If I turned left I didn't want to press the brake suddenly, I just continued, straight, then someonehitmefrombehind.I didn'twanttocausesomething in the exit road."
Balan said he was looking for a safe place to check his load when the "horrible thing happened".
He told police he did not want to make the left turn as hefearedthemanoeuvrecould haveeffectedtheloadhefeared was already loose.
He added: "I didn't know if it was the right thing to do but I had no option at all, I had no option. I would have caused a catastrophe. Something was loose, I could heard 'boom, boom', that's all I know. I was scared something was going to happen imminently."
Balan said he "did not stop suddenly" and said Mr Robinson maybe "wasn't paying attention" or "maybe he fell asleep" when the crash happened.
He added: "I put my hands on my head, I got out of the vehicle,Ilooked,Ilookedaround, he was underneath."