A motorist was dragged to safety after a blazing lorry fell on top of him.

He had stopped on the A12 at 6.20am today to help a trucker whose lorry cab was on fire when the good deed turned to disaster.

The trucker called the fire brigade for help.

But as the pair waited at the side of the road at Margaretting, near Chelmsford, on the northbound carriageway, another heavy goods vehicle was in collision with the lorry.

The lorry tipped over and trapped the car driver underneath with flames surrounding him.

Other drivers stopped and managed to pull him free after jacking up the lorry. The man was taken to Broomfield Hospital with severe chest injuries. The A12 was closed for four hours.

Firefighters put out the flames, believed to have been sparked by an electrical fault in the cab of the lorry.

Station officer Peter Holding, from Chelmsford, said: "It's important to stress that he was saved by members of the public. Without that he could have suffered severe burns."

A passenger in another car involved in the smash sustained a broken arm. Two other people were treated for minor injuries.

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