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Crowd of 100 people lift double-decker bus to free hurt unicyclist in London
Dramatic video shows crowd lift double-decker bus to save life of trapped unicyclist
(35 minutes later)
A crowd of around 100 people lifted a double-decker bus to free a seriously wounded unicyclist trapped beneath the 12-tonne vehicle in a “miracle” that may have saved the man’s life, according to a paramedic at the scene.
Incredible video footage has captured the moment up to 100 bystanders in London lifted a double-decker bus to save the life of a unicyclist trapped underneath its wheels.
The 55-year-old man was in a “critical but stable” condition in hospital after the accident in Walthamstow, London, on Thursday, a day that saw two other cyclists lose their lives on the roads.
The unicyclist collided with a route 212 bus in Walthamstow, north-east London, at about 6pm on Thursday.
Esther Hartsilver, 32, died in an accident involving a lorry in Denmark Hill, London, and a second woman in her 50s was killed in a collision in Walton-on-Thames in Surrey on the outskirts of the capital.
Footage of the event shows people rushing to help dozens attempting to lift the vehicle off the man. Shouts and gasps of panic are then heard as the crowd moves the bus a few feet away.
A 34-year-old man was arrested on suspicion of causing death by dangerous driving while disqualified by Surrey Police, but no one was charged over the Denmark Hill accident.
The unicycle is shown under the bus after the man riding it was freed (Pic: Nigel Howard) Witnesses described people leaving their tables in restaurants and running out to help. Cafe owner Sami Ullah told London's Evening Standard up to 100 were involved in moving the bus.
Stephen Hines, an off-duty paramedic manager, arrived at the scene of the Walthamstow accident about five minutes after the first 999 call to find two police officers working to stem the blood from a serious wound in the man’s leg.
Another witness, Kyra Sam, told the paper: "I'm really amazed at the strength of Walthamstow - no-one hesitated to push the bus off, I was in shock. Everyone really came together to help - it was really nice to see that in the face of something so awful.”
Mr Hines said he was told the man had been freed from under the bus but did not realise how this had been achieved until he saw a video later.
The incident mirrored the efforts of commuters in Perth, Australia, who collectively pushed a train off a man whose leg became trapped between a carriage and the platform edge.
“I think, having seen the video, it was a miracle. When they told me what they did, I thought they just rocked the bus until they were able to take him out. The film shows it was physically lifted and moved three feet,” he said.
The London Ambulance Service said off duty Paramedic Manager Stephen Hines was the first medic on scene and arrived within five minutes. He told The Independent the man had already been freed by the time he arrived there.
“I think if no one had done anything before I got there ... there’s a good chance he wouldn’t be where he is now.”
“When I got there the patient was already out from under the bus and members of public said they had freed him by lifting the bus. It was definitely a great help to me as it meant I could start treating him straight away.
The man would either have died or “suffered considerably more than he did” if not for the swift actions of the crowd and the police officers, he added.
Police take photographs of the route 212 bus (Pic: Nigel Howard) "The patient was treated for serious leg injuries, given pain relief and taken to hospital as a priority.”
The unicyclist was conscious throughout his treatment and at one point tried to get up, Mr Hines said. He stressed any decision to move a vehicle to free a trapped casualty had to be taken depending on the specific circumstances. “It’s… a risk… but in this case, they were right,” he said.
A spokesperson for the Metropolitan Police said the man was in a serious but stable condition in hospital.
Kyra Sam told the London Evening Standard how people had quickly decided to lift the bus. “I’m really amazed at the strength of Walthamstow – no one hesitated to push the bus off. I was in shock,” she said.
The force said in a statement: "Police were called at 5.50pm to a bus in collision with a unicyclist in Hoe Street, E17. The male unicyclist was taken by ambulance to an east London hospital where his condition is believed to be serious.
“Everyone really came together to help – it was really nice to see that in the face of something so awful.”
"The bus - a route 212 - stopped at the scene. There has been no arrest. Roads closures are in place."
And Sami Ullah, owner of the nearby Directors Cut café, added: “I was standing at the till and heard a loud noise. It was a big bang – we thought it was a shotgun or something.
“All of a sudden, we saw people leaving their chairs at Turtle Bay and Pizza Express and running towards the road. We saw people actually coming out of the bus as well. Everybody was shouting and screaming.
“Then all of the people tried to somehow move the bus a little bit.”
Barry Gates, of the London Unicycle Hockey Club, said riding a unicycle on ordinary roads was as safe as riding a bicycle if the unicyclist was experienced and not “a wobbly novice”. “He was so lucky there were people around to help him,” he said.
The victim of the Denmark Hill accident worked as physiotherapist at King’s College Hospital, where she had been an expert pelvic health specialist for almost a year.
A statement from King’s College Hospital NHS Foundation Trust said: “We have lost a dear and respected colleague. The thoughts of everyone at King’s are with Esther’s family.”
A van, a car and a tanker were all involved in the Walton-on-Thames crash, which also saw the van driver taken to hospital.
Once the preserve of comics, clowns and street performers, unicycling is having something of a moment – with commuters riding one wheel to work as an alternative way to get fit.
Membership of unicycling clubs across the UK is rising, and sports played on the bikes such as unicycle hockey and extreme unicycling are also proving popular.
Britain’s first urban unicycling competition – in which contestants battled it out for top place by performing BMX-style tricks – took place in London last year. The first national unicycle road race was held in Horwich near Bolton in 2013.
Roger Davies, managing director of the website Unicycle.com, said the sale of traditional small-wheeled unicycles peaked around a decade ago thanks to “fads” for taking up the sport. But sales of an improved type of unicycle, with larger wheels, designed specifically for riding the road, has created a new market for one-wheeled pedal pushers.
“The unicycles are better now for transport and there’s more of a trend for using them for commuting,” Mr Davies said. “Large-wheel unicycles travel at the speed of bikes and it’s better for your body as it requires core strength. You can take them on buses or the tube more easily than you can bicycles. They’re more agile so you can weave in and out of traffic if you need to – although that’s a dangerous thing to do.”
According to the Union of UK Unicyclists, a law passed in 1994 means that a unicycle counts as a “pedal cycle” and can be legally ridden on British roads. In fact a letter sent by Hampshire Police to a cyclist on the Isle of Wight in 2000 confirmed to the union that “unicycles are included in the definition of pedal cycles and thus should be ridden on the road and not on the pavement”.
However, Mr Davies said the Walthamstow cyclist who came unstuck appeared to be riding a small-wheeled cycle which was “not appropriate” for the road. “As a general rule, small wheels of 24 inches are for the pavement. Only [unicycles with wheels of] 26 inches and above are road vehicles,” he explained.
Mr Davies, who has been travelling to work on a unicycle for decades, had some timely advice for novice road riders. “You need to be sensible. It’s no different from a bike – you need to make yourself visible.”
