Nephew's shock at finding aunt lying injured in road

A MAN has told of his shock at stumbling upon a road accident as he walked home and realising the victim was his aunt.

INVESTIGATION: Police closed Wolseley Place for around two hours after the accident. Picture: GREG MACVEAN

Mohammed Ashfaq was walking on Wolseley Place, Jock's Lodge, at around 11.30am yesterday when he saw aunt Janat Azad, 49, lying semi-conscious in front of the skiploader. She was rushed to hospital where she is described as being in a serious but stable condition.

Mr Ashfaq said: "It was very shocking.

"I went to check she was okay. The paramedics were dealing with her so I ran to collect her children from school."

Mrs Azad's husband, also Mohammed, a private hire car driver, was contacted and rushed to her bedside.

The couple's three children Halima, 11, Rabina, ten, and Ansar, seven, were staying with their uncle Mohammed last night. The couple also have an older child, 20-year-old Amjed.

Eyewitnesses said the mother-of-four was semi-conscious when paramedics arrived.

Rashid Ashraf, who was serving customers at Mr Hot Potato takeaway when Mrs Azad was hit, said: "She tried to cross and then the next thing was the lorry braking.

"I ran over to see if she was okay and she was lying in front of the lorry crying out.

"You could see that she was in shock. The ambulance arrived and tended to her in the road for quite a while, then she was put in the ambulance.

"She seemed quite calm by the time the paramedics had seen to her."

Tracie Callaghan, proprietor of Destinations travel agency, said: "I heard what I thought was a car crash, and thought the truck had hit another car.

"I looked out and saw lady wearing a traditional Asian-style dress lying in the road."

The lorry that hit Mrs Azad belongs to family-owned skip hire business Hamilton Waste Recycling, based at Wallyford Industrial Estate in Musselburgh.

The company's David Hamilton said: "The driver went home in shock. He phoned in after it happened and said the woman just went straight on to the road without looking. He was pretty shaken.

"My brother Keir, went straight down to the scene when he heard. We're a family a business and the most important thing for us is the welfare of the lady involved. We hope she's okay, and our thoughts are with her and her family."

A police spokesman said: "The 49-year-old woman suffered head injuries in the collision, and was taken to the Edinburgh Royal Infirmary, where she remains in a serious but stable condition.

"The road was closed for approximately two hours while investigations were carried out at the scene.

Police are appealing for anyone who was in the area at the time, who saw what happened, to contact them immediately."