By Paul Williams

ALL he wanted was a little help to find his way.

But after a lorry driver jumped down from his cab to ask for directions, his worst nightmare was about to unfold.

The driver, from Southamptonbased Lambert Brothers Haulage Ltd, watched in horror as his truck rolled away down a hill.

He was forced to chase the 16- tonne vehicle down the street as it knocked down lampposts and signs before ploughing into a wall just yards from a busy railway station.

It came to a halt, wedged across the corner of a main road as the driver stood with his head in his hands in despair.

The scene of carnage greeted rail passengers arriving at St Austell station in Cornwall.

One witness described how the driver had got out of his cab to ask directions when the vehicle suddenly began to roll towards the station.

Malcolm Fowler, who lives in St Austell, was on his way to an appointment when he heard an “almighty crash”.

He said: “I looked and saw this huge lorry which was parked in a position you wouldn’t expect to see a lorry in. The driver tried to reverse it out of the way because it was blocking the road but that didn’t happen.

“There was such a loud scraping noise. It was like dropping a tray of knives and forks but multiplied many times. I couldn’t believe it.”

Police were called to the scene and closed the road after the incident on Monday lunchtime.

A police spokesman said an investigation was now under way into the crash.

He added: “It was very fortune that no one was hurt.

“The lorry appears to have rolled down the approach road and into the car park of the train station causing damage to the stone wall.

“It came to a halt across the street. It would appear that the driver wasn’t in the vehicle and therefore the exact cause of why the lorry moved is being investigated at this time.

“No one was hurt. Officers were at the scene for a number of hours. High Cross Street was closed but passengers could still get vehicular access.”

A specialist crane was needed to remove the lorry, which was carrying bags of cement.

A spokesman for Lambert Brothers Haulage said he was not in a position to comment because the driver had not yet returned to Southampton.