Farmer 'lucky to be alive' as cattle trailer tips over in middle of expressway

HOURS OF TRAVEL CHAOS ENSUES AND POLICE MARKSMEN PUT ON STANDBY IN CASE ANIMALS PANICKED AND ESCAPED TO BUSY A55 OR TOWN CENTRE

- By ANDREW FORGRAVE Countryside and Tourism Editor [e-mail]

POLICE marksmen were put on standby when a cattle trailer overturned on the A55 yesterday.

The crash blocked the east-bound carriageway in Conwy for four hours and caused massive congestion in both directions.

Drivers were warned to avoid the area and those caught up in the chaos were diverted through Colwyn Bay, causing major snarl-ups in the town.

At the centre of it all was an Anglesey farmer and his three cattle who somehow walked away from the crash relatively unscathed.

He was en route to Mold live-stock market when his Toyota Hilux pick-up overturned between junctions 22 and 23 at Old Colwyn.

With his trailer also on its side, the accident site blocked both lanes.

Emergency services were soon on the scene and they began enlisting specialist help to deal with the potential prospect of injured and distressed cattle.

A vet was called to the scene and a traffic officer reportedly drove to St Asaph livestock market to ask for help, prompting a series of phone calls to local farmers.

First to respond were Anglesey's Elwyn Evans, and Michael Jones from Bangor.

After hitching up Michael's trailer to Elwyn's pick-up, they were astonished by what they found.

"We were sent a photo of the crash site and it looked terrible,” said Michael.

“When we got there, we couldn't believe it.

“Fair play, the police gave us an escort from Conwy.

“People waiting in the queues thought we were being cheeky and many weren’t happy - they were beeping their horns and trying to block us.

“Arriving at the scene, we found the farmer was shaken but otherwise unharmed.