A QUICK-thinking lorry driver has insisted he is no hero after playing a vital role to protect people injured in a motorway crash.

Nuno Daniel was driving his Thames Water tanker along the M3 last month when a car and another lorry collided in front of him.

The car spun and crashed through a fence, badly injuring an elderly female passenger, while the lorry had come to a stop in the middle lane.

Seeing the incident, Mr Daniel, from Basingstoke, acted quickly putting on his hazard lights and flashing orange beacons to warn others of the danger up ahead.

But as the traffic began to slow near the incident, between Junctions 3 and 2, the 42-year-old, along with another lorry driver, took action to block part of the carriageway to protect the scene and prevent a second collision from happening.

Mr Daniel said: “It was human instinct. I did not do it to be a hero.

“I could see a stationary car and a truck that had stopped in the middle of the motorway.

“The car had spun and crashed into a fence. The fence had come through the passenger side.

“An elderly lady was badly injured, and a gentleman had just got out of the car bleeding.

“People were not stopping so my main concern was the victims, so I used my truck for protection.

“I did not want to cause another accident, so I put on my hazard lights and flashing lights to make sure I was visible to other drivers and slowed down gradually.”

Until the emergency services arrived at the scene on June 6, the Thames Water employee helped direct traffic past the scene while another member of the public helped the victims.

The Portuguese-born lorry driver has been praised by Surrey Police for undertaking the manoeuvre to help preserve the dignity and safety of those involved.

Sergeant Matt Reynolds said: “We would like to thank the Thames Water lorry driver, who was extremely helpful and assisted us greatly at the scene of the collision by providing reassurance to those involved.

“As well as using his lorry to hold the traffic back, it also blocked the view of the scene from other road users.”

The father-of-one also provided the police with dash cam footage which helped officers piece together the events leading up to the collision.

Justin Lambourne, head of operational projects and logistics at Thames Water, said: “Nuno’s quick-thinking protected the scene of the collision and mitigated the risk of further collision from other vehicles heading towards the scene at speed.

“The police praised Nuno for his actions, recognising that his action had avoided what could have been a much more significant collision.”