‘I’ve just killed someone’ as HGV crushes car in horror M62 motorway crash

Wayne Burgess, 61, pleaded guilty to dangerous driving after ploughing into a 70-year-old woman's car on the M62 [National story]

08:26, 02 Apr 2026Updated 08:31, 02 Apr 2026

A man has convicted following a crash on the M62(Image: Traffic Cameras)

Dashcam footage captured a HGV driver's reaction following a horrific M62 crash that left a woman with devastating injuries. Wayne Burgess, who tested positive for cocaine after his arrest, could be heard saying 'F****** hell, I've just killed someone' after he ploughed into the back of a car near Birch Services.

Minshull Street Crown Court was told it was a miracle that the victim, a 70 year old grandmother of two, survived.

Moments before the collision on May 2 last year, a distracted Burgess, 61, could be heard speaking on a hands-free call reciting a postcode in Salford while apparently entering it into a sat nav.

The woman's car was crushed beneath both Burgess's lorry and another truck in front. She was left trapped inside for a 'significant' period of time before being cut free from the wreckage by firefighters and taken to the major trauma unit at Salford Royal.

There she was treated for a fractured eye socket, two broken ribs, numerous lacerations and further injuries. The court heard the crash left her with 'severe facial disfigurement', reports the Manchester Evening News[1].

Prosecuting barrister Amy Weir informed the court that the woman had been travelling home from work in the inside lane of the M62 when she began slowing down due to heavy traffic.

She then glanced in her rear-view mirror and spotted a lorry 'hurtling' towards her.

In a victim impact statement read out in court, the woman said she instantly knew the vehicle was going to strike her.

Burgess appeared at Minshull Street Crown Court(Image: MEN Media)

Describing the 'devastating' moment of the collision, she said: "The horror that was inevitable hit me in an instant.

"It seemed like he was trying to kill me. The noise was deafening and when everything went still the silence was eerie. I was helpless, crushed between two lorries and convinced I wasn't going to survive."

Since the crash she has been unable to work or help care for her grandchildren, she told the court, adding: "This accident didn't just cause physical injuries it upended every aspect of my life.

The trauma continues to affect all of us."

Hayley Parkes, defending, said Burgess took 'full acknowledgement of the seriousness of the offence and the severity on the victim'. She informed the court that Burgess had longstanding substance abuse problems and at the time had been using cocaine to 'self-medicate' his then undiagnosed ADHD. He has since completed a detoxification programme.

She added: "He struggles to put into words how he feels about what happened that day and how he feels about the victim's suffering."

Recorder Katie Jones said the victim had 'endured a terrible ordeal' and it was 'extremely lucky' she hadn't been killed.

She added: "The terror was indescribable.

She thought she was going to die." Burgess, of Holme Bank, Rossendale, admitted causing serious injury through dangerous driving and driving while over the specified limit.

He received a 17-month prison sentence, suspended for two years, was disqualified from driving for 10 years, ordered to complete 300 hours unpaid work and 15 days rehabilitation and told to complete a 12-month rehabilitation requirement.

References

1. ^ the Manchester Evening News (www.manchestereveningnews.co.uk)