Hucknall dad's warning after son 'could have been killed' in collision with van in town

Craig Stewart became worried when his son, Craig Junior, failed to show up for his usual visit at the weekend.

“He didn’t turn up at 8pm like he normally does and I couldn’t get hold of him on the phone,” Craig said.

“Then a bit later he rang me and told me what had happened – that he’d been hit by a van.”

Craig Junior was cycling near the junction of Annesley Road and Montague Road when, he claims, a white van swerved onto the wrong side of the street and knocked him off his bike.

“When I got there he was really scared and shaken up,” his dad said.

“Thankfully there was another lad there who stood with him until I got there, which I was grateful for.

“He said he hit the bonnet of the van for a couple of seconds before landing on the ground – and as he did that the bike was crushed under the wheels.

“I took him to hospital as he said his leg hurt, and he had bruising all up his arm, hip and knee.”

Despite the injuries and having to spend £200 to fix the bike, Craig is just grateful that his son is still alive.

“At the hospital they said he was very lucky,” he said.

"If he’d gone under with the bike then he could’ve died. They said there was a 90% chance he would have been killed.”

Craig is also worried about the mental impact of the incident on his son, who attends Holgate Academy.

He said: “He’s a jack-the-lad who likes playing out on his bike all the time and plays football every weekend.

“I can already see that it’s changed his personality a bit. He missed a match for the first time ever this weekend and I don’t think he wants to go out on his bike again now.

“Your legs and arms can heal but this is something that’s going to take a lot more time.”

The concerned father is warning others in the area to watch out for rogue drivers.

Craig added: “I just want to spread awareness of this incident so people can be careful. And I want to ask drivers to be more cautious of bikes.

“There’s no excuse for driving on the wrong side of the road. This should never have happened.”