The family of a mum killed as she sat in her car stranded on the motorway have described the moment they realised she was caught up in the horror scene.
Shirley-Ann Dumbuya, 38, was left "trapped" in her Kia Ceed when it broke down on the M60 and Green Flag told her they couldn't come out "unless she was on the hard shoulder".
The mum-of-four phoned her husband, Peniel Dumbuya, screaming with panic - but minutes later lorry driver, John Bowers, 35, crashed into her sitting car, killing her in the collision in January last year.
At a sentencing hearing at Manchester Crown Court, Bowers, of Sefton Road, Preston, was handed a suspended sentence after pleading guilty to causing death by careless driving, Manchester Evening News reports.
Shirley's daughter, Alice, 19, bravely stood up in court to describe how her dad had driven out to rescue his wife, only to discover their smashed up car surrounded by police and paramedics.
“My father received a telephone call from my mother, who is in complete panic after she had broken down in lane one of the M60,” she said.
“They had swapped cars because the windscreen wipers were not working on her car and took his car. My dad usually uses the Kia and my mum used a Nissan Qashqai.
“After my father received the phone call, he drove to the M60 on the route he knows she would take.
"Eventually he saw a police car parked at the junction close to Costco and wondered why it was there.
“He continued along the M60 looking for my mum, only to find on his arrival at the scene police, fire and ambulance crews.
"He looked to his left and in disbelief, recognised the registration number of the Kia motor vehicle on the embankment on the side of the motorway.
“He pulled over, got out of his car and a police officer asked him why he was there only to answer, 'that is my wife.'
“He was stood there helplessly, the most difficult thing he had to endure, seeing that she had already passed away.
"You can only imagine how that must have felt, to see your wife there, still in the car at the time and that really hurts him.”
Alice said that a police officer had explained to her dad that due to Covid restrictions, usually an identification would be conducted at the mortuary.
But given the extraordinary circumstances Mrs Dumbuya was placed in an ambulance and taken off the motorway, while her bereaved husband was given time to sit with her alone.
Alice continued: “When my father received the call from my mum, I was told by my dad to take my brother and sisters to school in a taxi.
"When my dad was out looking for my mum after she called him, I kept checking my phone, highways agency and AA websites, looking for incidents, trying to see what had happened.
“When we arrived at school, I received a call from my dad telling me to come home straight away. I knew something had happened, but he would not tell me what it was.
“I kept asking, 'Is mum, okay?' but he would not answer me. The taxi driver looked confused, but he just took us home.
“I was constantly trying to ring my mum, and someone answered the phone. I still don’t know who it was.
"My dad contacted the priest from our church to come round to our house, but he would not tell us what had happened.
“When we saw dad’s car come home, he took us upstairs and told us mum had died.”
The death of the beloved mum has impacted the entire family, leaving her husband unable to continue working as a bus driver or even drive down the motorway, Alice added.
Alice's nine-year-old brother and seven-year-old sister have also struggled to come to terms with their mum's death.
“My mother was loved by so many people and her life was cut short just like that, with something that was so avoidable,” she wept.
“I can only imagine the panic and fright my mother must have felt, when she was on the phone to my dad screaming,” Alice added.
Speaking directly to Bowers, the brave teen challenged the defendant on why he took 18 months to decide to plead guilty, after entering a not guilty plea at an earlier hearing.
She told him: “You have taken the life of a mother of four kids and a wife. She was so young, only 38, and had so much life to live.
“My mother will never see her children grow up, children get married and have grandchildren.
"She was so looking forward to that as she spoke about this. She never knew that I passed my A-levels to get into university.
“The milestones in our lives will never be the same without my mum being there to appreciate it, will sadden me forever.”
John Bowers was sentenced to a six-month jail sentence that was suspended for 12 months.
He was also disqualified from driving for three years and his licence was endorsed.
Judge Anthony Cross also condemned the insurance provider and called for an enquiry by the Assistant Chief Constable in Greater Manchester to look into what should happen if the situation arises again.
He said: “Green Flag should take it upon themselves to ring 999 to help the person who was obviously panicking, wondering whether to stay or get out of the vehicle, and worrying about the other cars on the motorway. This was an accident waiting to happen."
A Green Flag spokesperson said: “Green Flag was very sorry to hear of this tragic accident.
"We were not part of the court proceedings but will be reviewing how we handled this case.
"If a customer contacts us to say their car has broken down on the live lane of a motorway it is our policy, which follows National Highways guidance, that the call handler asks them to immediately call 999 for emergency assistance so the police can offer specific health and safety guidance to the driver directly.
"Green Flag contacts National Highways so the motorway can be closed to enable recovery of the vehicle.”
