A GANG of yobs hurled bricks off a motorway bridge - damaging at least seven vehicles and leaving motorists in fear of their lives.
Terrified drivers had to swerve to avoid crashing after they came under attack from mindless youths throwing bricks from a footbridge over the M62, near Rochdale.
In the space of just 10 minutes, seven vehicles - including a coach - had their windscreens damaged.
Police slammed the young culprits, saying their reckless behaviour had put innocent lives at risk.
Lorry driver John Linley-Parle believes it was a 'miracle' he escaped injury after he was caught up in the frightening drama. The father-of-one, who was driving from Oldham to Leeds, says he was lucky to avoid crashing his 44ft HGV at 60mph after his windscreen was hit by a brick.
He told how he heard aloud bang and was then faced with a terrifying struggle to keep control of his cab.
He said: "Somehow I managed to pull over onto the hard shoulder and couldn't believe my eyes when I started to check out the damage. A number of other cars were on the hard shoulder and they had all been struck too. One of the drivers told me he'd seen a group of lads throwing bricks from the footbridge and my heart sunk when I heard that. The consequences could have been catastrophic - I could have easily been killed and so could the others."
Although the motorists avoided injury, Mr Linley-Parle says the psychological impact of their near-misses will take longer to heal.
He added: "It was absolutely terrifying and I was really shaken up by it. There was a massive bullet-sized hole in my windscreen and there were shards of glass all over the cab. The kids who did this probably don't realise how stupid they were. To me, it's attempted murder. Would they have come to my door and told my wife and 14-year-old son that they'd killed me? Their stupidity could have resulted in multiple deaths - next time the drivers might not be so lucky. Parents need to know what their children are getting up to and take more responsibility. These kids might be bragging to their mates about what they have done and I'd appeal to anyone with information to tell the police."
The shocking incidents took place just yards from the set of the BBC school drama Waterloo Road, which regularly features stories of tearaway teens causing mayhem.
Police are now appealing for witnesses to the incidents, which took place at Junction 20 of the M62 at around 5.30pm on Sunday.
Chief Inspector Alec McMurchy, of the traffic network section, said: "I cannot stress enough just how dangerous it is to throw anything at a moving vehicle. Although a number of cars have been damaged as a result of these mindless individuals, in reality the consequences could have been far greater. Innocent lives were put at risk as a result of these actions and I would urge anyone with information about who is responsible to call police."
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Showing comments 1 to 18 and replies | View All
selfexiled (17/11/2009 at 12:07)
The Chef, Spotland (17/11/2009 at 12:23)
Ray Stay (17/11/2009 at 12:25)
Local Walker (17/11/2009 at 12:25)
Well what do you expect when this rubbish is classed as entertainment.
Children are taught acting like a idiot and behaving like a idiot is cool.
With the court system giving out none sentences.
Do these morons have a brain I doubt it, do they care if anybody was killed by there actions
Care about getting caught that’s all .
Redberry, Manchester (17/11/2009 at 14:50)
12 year old kid robbed of his phone, Stealing from charity shops, major store refusing to serve people who openly support our troops and not a single poppy placed on a memorial to the dead soldiers of ww11. Its not long ago that a dying man was robbed of £3 by some drunken scumbag in a park. Its the pits that place.
Iain Monks Rochdale (16/02/2011 at 00:11)
Iain Monks (17/11/2009 at 17:39)
muzamal tufail (24/05/2011 at 07:01)
thedatathieves@googlemail.com thanks
MarXPacE, Sheriff Street (17/11/2009 at 21:16)
D.Ashworth, Rochdale (17/11/2009 at 21:20)
It's that cocktail of crud....thick, ugly, bored and cowardly and with no values or a guiding real life role model. There's got to be more to life than being like that.
The govt used to do public information films once upon a time. They should put them on in the middle of a soap opera (regardless of channel) and ask parents if they know what their [ugly:thick:bored:cowardly:lacking in values/role model] child is upto each night.
gary connaughton (18/11/2009 at 08:25)
wickedchop, littleborough (18/11/2009 at 11:17)
gatesofheaven (18/11/2009 at 16:31)
CASHSNATCHUK, UK (18/11/2009 at 17:55)
For heavens sake man.....why?????
Get out while you can (if you can afford too :-)and close the doors behind you,preferably with a big padlock on :-)
Cheyenne, Rochdale (18/11/2009 at 18:56)
Your Comments are what most individuals would like to see, punishment brought back, including the death penalty. Yet not that barbaric antiquated style of hanging. In this day and age we have the technology to terminate evil person with the needle. These young idiots, should be named shamed, and birched publicly. We are soft on all crime, and allow person to walk away with a slap on the wrist.
gary connaughton (19/11/2009 at 09:10)
Katie Hoyle (19/11/2009 at 12:49)
The Chef, Spotland (19/11/2009 at 16:22)
If someone was caught breaking the law, local justice was handed out on the spot (if you know what I mean).
There should be no rights for anyone who prefers to break the law rather than comply with the laws of the land.
Passers by cannot intervene if a youth is abusing an elderly person for fear of being taken to court as a child abuser for giving them a clip round the ear! (which is all a lot of these mouthy,cocky young kids need really!).
They know this and thrive on the power it gives them over adults.
Even if one of the drivers had been killed as a result of their actions what would have been the outcome?
D.Ashworth, Rochdale (19/11/2009 at 20:00)
On this particular incident...I used to get the train home from Manchester every day, and as we slowly pulled out of Victoria and through the badlands in the inner city wasteland that inspired Escape from New York, I don't know if the area qualifies as Harpurhey or Collihurst. Prams, bottles, bricks, bits of kitchen units etc. were all thrown at the train from the foot bridges and streets. This was in the 1980s. I'm sure the in-bred of that vicinity have passed on their genes (assuming they know how) and they will have grand children doing the same by now.
It isn't a Rochdale thing, it's a moron thing. We just need to figure out a reliable way of standing up as a society and, in the style of Ron Doberman, issuing a collective "Oi! Moron! NO!!!".
I'll repeat once more for the hard of thinking. It is not a Rochdale thing.
We need the Moron-catching equivalent of the child catcher from Chitty Chitty Bang Bang. Only his van would be replaced with a plane with a giant picture of Katie Price that flies to northern Siberia and throws them out with a parachute and a sack of pot noodle.
RED2THE CORE (20/11/2009 at 16:36)
On this particular incident...I used to get the train home from Manchester every day, and as we slowly pulled out of Victoria and through the badlands in the inner city wasteland that inspired Escape from New York, I don't know if the area qualifies as Harpurhey or Collihurst. Prams, bottles, bricks, bits of kitchen units etc. were all thrown at the train from the foot bridges and streets. This was in the 1980s. I'm sure the in-bred of that vicinity have passed on their genes (assuming they know how) and they will have grand children doing the same by now.
It isn't a Rochdale thing, it's a moron thing. We just need to figure out a reliable way of standing up as a society and, in the style of Ron Doberman, issuing a collective "Oi! Moron! NO!!!".
I'll repeat once more for the hard of thinking. It is not a Rochdale thing.
We need the Moron-catching equivalent of the child catcher from Chitty Chitty Bang Bang. Only his van would be replaced with a plane with a giant picture of Katie Price that flies to northern Siberia and throws them out with a parachute and a sack of pot noodle.
D.Ashworth, Rochdale
19/11/2009 at 20:00
Ok but rochdale is an overspill from manchester council estates that you mention and victoria train station is in ancoats region of manchester,its allways been a purpose built manchester overspill.