TWO ambulancemen cheated death when their new £28,000 vehicle careered off the motorway and spun onto its roof. Driver, paramedic Andrew Gullick, and his colleague, leading ambulance technician Graham Sleight, were lucky to escape alive in the terrifying crash in Bury yesterday afternoon. Fortunately there was no patient in the back of the ambulance when the accident happened on the M66 near the Pilsworth industrial estate junction.

The crew was returning to Bury ambulance station after taking a patient to Hope Hospital.

But the M-registration Renault Master Turbo, which had been on the road for just a fortnight and had 1,600 miles on the clock, was damaged beyond repair.

Today Andrew, who lives in Burnley, and Graham, of Bury, were recovering at home.

Graham said: "We were in the middle lane when the accident happened. I was writing and suddenly heard a bang.

"The next thing I knew we were rolling and we ended up back on our wheels, facing the other way."

The accident happened at 1pm when the ambulance was in collision with a Sierra car.

The ambulance swerved off the carriageway, somersaulted onto its roof and spun back onto its wheels. The emergency lights were embedded in the grassy bank and windows shattered.

The men, who were wearing seatbelts, escaped with minor injuries.

A passing motorist dialled 999 and several other motorists pulled over to help the shocked crash victims. They were taken to Bury General Hospital.

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