BRAVE ambulancemen fought to save the life of a driver trapped in her van as it threatened to fall from the top of Thelwall Viaduct.

Paramedic Mike Potter and ambulance technician Kevin Jolley felt the stricken vehicle shift beneath their weight as they tended to the driver, suspended more than 60ft above the Cheshire countryside.

The amazing rescue attempt came after the white Sherpa van had been involved in a collision with a sporty Renault Megane on the northbound carriageway of the Viaduct at 7pm on Tuesday.

The van spun around following the impact and crashed through the barriers, leaving its front hanging over the edge.

The driver of the van, Lisa Edwards, aged 27, of Woodvale Close, Padgate, died later. The car driver, a woman from the West Midlands, was not injured.

Passing motorists stopped their vehicles to help before the emergency services arrived. One lorry driver whose wagon had a crane on its trailer, stopped the van toppling over the edge. He used the crane to weigh down the rear of the van before and during the rescue.

Two lanes of the motorway were closed for several hours as the rescue took place.

Station Officer Mike Potter and Kevin Jolley were the first ambulance crew on the scene.

Mike said: "I climbed in through the passenger door and across the seat to reach her, while Kevin held on to my belt.

"It was very scary, but you try not to think about it. When our manager arrived he said it was too dangerous and we were told to get out, but by then the specialist fire crews had arrived with ropes and harnesses.

"There was movement as the van tipped with our weight. I was told that the wheels were lifting off the road."

Kevin added: "The girl was unconscious and there were no vital signs, but if we had put any equipment in the van it could have tipped over. We gave her oxygen and heart massage, but she wasn't responding until we took her out of the vehicle. She had massive internal injuries."

Mike said: "In 13 years, this is the most dangerous job I have been to."

Fire fighters also proved themselves during the rescue attempt, leaning precariously out over the drop to attach ropes to the front of the van before winching it round to safety.

Inspector John Bennet of Cheshire motorway police said: the crash was being investigated, and witnesses who might have seen either car before the incident were being sought.

A 44-year-old woman from Halesowen in the West Midlands was interviewed by police on Wednesday morning in connection with the incident and released on police bail.

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