Direct hit – runaway tyre takes out A1 petrol station sign

Anyone who’s watched the 1955 film The Dam Busters – or even Star Wars Episode IV, whose climatic sequence is said to have been inspired by this British classic – will marvel in the Guy Gibson-like precision shown by a runaway tyre on the A1 yesterday. The tyre was witnessed bouncing along the main road before shooting 25 feet in the air and scoring a direct hit in the middle of a BP petrol station sign – an act we can see for ourselves thanks to our ever present friend, the surveillance video camera. Surprisingly, no motorist has contacted the police or come forward to claim a missing wheel or tyre.

The Sun newspaper, which describes the event as a “tread-ful” incident, interviewed several people following the occurrence on the southbound A1 carriageway at North Muskham, Nottinghamshire. BP area manager James Kemp told the paper that the tyre struck the sign with the accuracy of “a guided missile,” adding that it “hit the grass verge in front of our forecourt and bounced straight through our pole sign, destroying the BP Helios. Its aim was frankly incredible.” After reviewing CCTV footage of the event, Kemp opined that it could have been fatal had someone got in the tyre’s way.

“Fuel prices have decreased by 5p over the past month, but it seems that the tyres are still not happy and are fighting back,” the BP area manager added. “It couldn’t be found so we presume it’s still on its journey. Nobody came forward and accepted responsibility. It was a very strange incident to say the least.”

One motorist on hand to see the wheel in action commented to the Sun that “it was weird. The tyre seemed to have a mind of its own. To take out the dead centre like that must have been a million-to-one shot. It was like that old film about the wartime Dam Busters with the bomb bouncing. It was definitely a direct hit.”

Photos and videos of the event can be seen at The Sun and Daily Mail websites.