Bathgate Good Samaritan dies in road accident

Feb 4 2010 by Marjorie Kerr, West Lothian Courier

A WEST Lothian driver who died while helping a fellow motorist on the M8 has been named.

Thomas Rarity, 47, of Bathgate, died after being struck by a van while helping a woman involved in a crash at Linwood, near Glasgow Airport, on Sunday.

A 39-year-old is also in a critical condition in hospital following the accident.

The men had gone to the aid of a 71-year-old woman who was driving her Volkswagen Polo eastbound on the A737 when her car was involved in a collision with a Seat Leon car being driven eastbound by a 25-year-old woman.

As a result of the crash, the Polo left the eastbound carriageway, crossed the central reservation and ended up in the westbound carriageway.

The two men witnessed the crash, stopped their cars on the eastbound carriageway, then crossed over to the westbound carriageway to assist.

But as the two men were helping the pensioner in her Volkswagen Polo, a Vauxhall Combo van being driven westbound by a 48-year-old man struck the car and the two men.

Emergency services were called but Mr Rarity died at the scene.

The 39-year-old man was taken to the Southern General Hospital in Glasgow where he is being treated for head and leg injuries. Hospital staff describe his condition as critical.

The 71-year-old driver of the Volkswagen Polo was taken by ambulance to the Royal Alexandra Hospital in Paisley where she is being treated for a shoulder injury. Hospital staff describe her condition as stable.

The 25-year-old driver of the Seat Leon was uninjured, but badly shaken.

Inspector Paul Reilly of Road Policing Department at Dumbarton, urged motorists not to put their own lives at risk when helping others. He said: “The two men were assisting the elderly injured woman, when they were stuck by the van on the carriageway.

“Unfortunately this tragic incident also shows how dangerous busy roads can be, and I would urge anyone who witnesses a road crash on a busy road not to walk along the carriageways, but contact the emergency services.”

Sergeant Jane Taylor of the Road Policing Department at Dumbarton is appealing to anyone who witnessed the incidents take place to contact her office on 01389 822124 as a matter of urgency.