THE wife of a Four Marks man killed on the A31 after he ran out of petrol has paid tribute to all those who helped in the aftermath of the tragedy.

Louise Webb so nearly lost her own life after her husband, Bryan, was mown down by a VW Transporter on the southbound stretch of the carriageway between the Chawton roundabout and Four Marks on January 13 last year.

It was when Mr Webb was refuelling his car, at around 6.50pm, that the father of two was hit by the VW Transporter driven by Vincent Scicluna, also of Four Marks.

Mr Webb, 58, suffered fatal injuries and was pronounced dead at the scene.

At the time, Mrs Webb was sat in her Mini on the side of the road having come to the rescue with a can of petrol, in response to an SOS from her husband who had broken down in rush-hour traffic.

Having hit Mr Webb, the Transporter went on to push his Beetle into her Mini which, she said, “immediately burst into flames with me in it”.

If it hadn’t been for the courage and quick thinking of a driver who had stopped to help, she too may have been seriously hurt.

But he managed to get her out of the car before checking to see if there were any other occupants inside.

“He also checked my husband’s car for other passengers, and then proceeded to help me up onto my feet and away from the carriageway. Another driver took me to sit in his van until the paramedics arrived,” she said.

Her Good Samaritan was one of a number of drivers who stopped to help the couple.

“An off-duty fireman, as well as a lady driver, tried for at least 20 minutes to administer CPR to Bryan,” said Mrs Webb, who has expressed grateful thanks to them all, including the many drivers who came forward as witnesses to the crash and took the time to give formal statements to the police.

And to a first responder who assisted her for at least 40 minutes before the ambulance was able to make its way to the scene.

“All of these people were kind, thoughtful and did their utmost to help at an unbearable time for me,” said Mrs Webb, who added: “Sadly, as is the way, I have no knowledge of who any of these people are, and no way of contacting them. So now the case is over, I would like to take this opportunity to say a heartfelt thank you to all of them for their generosity of spirit and their good deeds and kindness on that dreadful night.”

At Winchester Crown Court last Thursday, VW Transporter driver Vincent Scicluna, 59, of Telegraph Lane, Four Marks, pleaded guilty of causing the death of Bryan Webb by careless driving and was sentenced to eight months in prison, suspended for 12 months, and disqualified from driving for 18 months.

He was also ordered to carry out 100 hours of unpaid work and to pay £1,200 in costs.

Sergeant Mark Furse said: “This collision and Mr Webb’s death could have been avoided if Mr Scicluna had been paying attention to the road ahead of him. Several other cars were able to see Mr Webb’s vehicle and drive past it safely, however one man’s inattention to the road cost Mr Webb his life.”

He added: “I hope this case serves as a warning to all motorists about how dangerous it can be if you are not giving your full attention to the road. The consequences, as this incident has proved, can be fatal.”

After sentencing, Mr Webb’s family released a statement.

It read: “As a family we are relieved that there is now a guilty plea, however the last 15 months have been the worst of our lives, made worse by the lack of an early guilty plea.

“Now we have the beginning of some closure in this devastating and unbearable situation.

“We hope that this case will send a message that careless driving and the tragic loss of life will not go unpunished, and if we can stop at least one other family from having their entire lives torn apart, something has been achieved amongst the grief and pain.

“Bryan was a unique individual. A well-known and much loved character, he was not only a fantastic husband and father, but a witty and loyal friend, a successful management trainer to many hundreds of delegates, a lifelong blood donor, charity fundraiser and former chair of school governors.

“We have been overwhelmed with messages of sympathy from many who came into Bryan’s life.

“His untimely and horrific death has affected the lives of so many and we are grateful to everyone who has given us help and support over the last fifteen months and to those who continue to do so.

“We now try and continue the task of picking up the pieces of our shattered lives without him.”