CCTV footage of a fatal bin lorry crash has been shown in court as a binman described his desperate attempts to get a response from its unconscious driver.
Henry Clarke, 58, collapsed at the wheel of his council refuse lorry, causing the vehicle to career out of control, killing six and injuring 10 others in Glasgow three days before Christmas last year.
The families of the victims stayed out of the Fatal Accident Inquiry's (FAI) courtroom while footage showed the lorry mount a busy pavement filled with shoppers and skim a wall before it returned to the road and collided with cars.
The court also heard a first hand account of the tragedy from panicked crew member Matthew Telford, 46.
He said: "I started screaming at him. I started punching him on the back to get a response but I didn’t get anything.
"I remember hitting the pavement and going through a bin. There were three women beside the bin so from there I thought it hit the three women. I started screaming to him, you’re killing people but got no response."
Earlier, the inquiry heard how many members of the public reported seeing driver Mr Clarke "unconscious" and "slumped forward" with his hands on the steering wheel.
The medical history of Mr Clarke will be a focus of the inquiry, which began with a minute's silence.
Mr Clarke is among the witnesses who will give evidence to the FAI.
It will examine the circumstances surrounding the tragedy and look into Mr Clarke's medical background, his fitness to hold a licence, his training and employment record.
Scotland's prosecuting body, the Crown Office, has already stated that Mr Clarke will face no criminal charges.
The inquiry, which is expected to last for at least a month, will also look at whether it was appropriate for the lorry to drive the city centre route in the mid-afternoon during the pre-Christmas period.
It will also examine the technical aspects of the vehicle and look at whether or not there could have been steps taken to have brought it to a controlled stop.
Erin McQuade, 18, died in the tragedy along with her grandparents Jack Sweeney, 68, and his 69-year-old wife Lorraine, all from Dumbarton. Stephenie Tait, 29, and Jacqueline Morton, 51, both from Glasgow, and Gillian Ewing, 52, from Edinburgh, were also killed.
The families of those who died are attending the inquiry, which is taking place before Sheriff John Beckett QC, with no jury.
An FAI is the Scottish equivalent of an inquest, and takes place when there is suspicion surrounding a death or when there is a strong public interest in examining the circumstances surrounding a death.
The sheriff will determine the cause of the crash and establish what lessons can be learned.
