A woman from Downham is lucky to be alive after being left stranded, upside down in her car, after a crash on the M6.
Hannah Binns, 27, will run the London Marathon next year to raise funds to thank the firefighters who rescued her.
The crash took place last December, when Hannah’s car left the motorway near junction 16, after something hit the side of her car. She still does not know what hit her car.
She veered off the motorway and ended up trapped in her car, upside down, in the woods.
She said: “I had a bad car crash last December and this is my way to give back to the people who helped
“I was driving home from work in Stratford-Upon-Avon and it was dark. I checked my mirrors and as I merged something went into the side of me.
“My car span across lanes and my car ended up going over the barrier. I was trapped upside down in the woods. No one stopped to help me and my phone had been flung out of the car meaning I couldn’t call anyone for help.”
She said: “I was lucky to have the button in my car. I was so shocked at what at happened. Then I felt panic knowing no one knew where I was. My parents didn’t know if I was okay or not and that I couldn’t ring them to tell them this.
“I was crying due to the shock of it all but I knew I needed to pull myself together because I didn’t know how long I’d be trapped there for. “
Miraculously, Hannah walked away from the crash with only a fractured rib and concussion.
She said: “The fact I walked away from that crash was incredible.
“I feel a bit of survivor's guilt because you hear of people who have had bad crashes and got really bad injuries. I have written a car off but I didn’t need to go to the hospital.
“Someone, somewhere, must have been watching over me.”
Hannah has high praise for the firefighters who rescued her from the vehicle.
She said: “I was incredibly grateful towards the firefighters who helped me. Not only did they get me out of the car and keep me warm, they spoke to me about farming as one of them was a farmer. The talking really took my mind off the crash.
“They also found things in my car that I could take home with me and they recovered my phone and called my parents on my behalf to tell them I was okay.”
It will be her first marathon and she is aiming to raise £2,250.
“I want to highlight the great work firefighters do,” Hannah said. “They are there in our time of need but who is there when they need support?
“I did a half marathon earlier this year and I loved it. I started running in lockdown and have just carried on running ever since.”
To make a donation visit www.justgiving.com and search ‘Hannah runs the TCS 2025 London Marathon for The Fire Fighters Charity’.
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