SHAKEN survivor Royston Davis desperately tried to save his colleague's life after being inches away from death himself when a lorry ploughed through the window of his estate agents.

Mr Davis, a partner at Aitchison's Estate Agency, miraculously escaped with his life on Thursday but as he was thrown to one side, his colleague Margaret Doel and client Sally Jamieson were swept away and tragically killed.

The 39-year-old, working at the estate agents, in Easton Street, High Wycombe, described how he tried to crawl through the wreckage to get to the two women who had been trapped.

He said: "All I could see was the lorry coming past and I knew Maggie and the lady were at the back of the shop but there was nothing I could do.

"The next minute they were gone," he said.

"The lorry was literally inches away as it came past and I was stuck between that and the wall.

"For some reason I had stood up while making a phone call. I think that saved my life.

"I tried to get to Maggie and the customer but it was blocked with rubble," he added, his voice still shaking.

He said he spotted a gap at the front of the shop and pushed his way out to get help.

At this point terrified onlookers described him, covered in dust and still holding the receiver of the phone that had been ripped away by the force of the lorry.

The horror had begun when the lorry appeared to lose control on Amersham Hill.

Dozens of witnesses told how the lorry careered down Crendon Street with the driver desperately trying to brake and sounding his horn before crashing into Aitchisons at around 2.50pm.

Mother-of-three Margaret had been working as a negotiator at the firm for only a week but had been friends with Mr Davis for several years.

Mr Davis said his heart goes out to the families of those who have been left devastated by the horrific accident.

He said: "All I can think about is Maggie and her family.

"She was the most wonderful lady and we had only just been talking about how proud she was of her sons.

"I had just smiled at the lady who came into the shop just before it happened.

"I wish it had been me rather than Maggie.

"I can't believe I got out alive."

More coverage in the Bucks Free Press on Friday.