THE wife of a motorcyclist last night told how she discovered the scene of a crash that left her husband fighting for his life.

Roger Axell, a father-of-two from Carterton, yesterday remained in a critical condition after the crash on the A419 near Stroud, Gloucestershire.

His wife Josephine, 50, has not left his bedside since the crash on Friday.

She said that the moment she realised he had been hurt was the worst in her life.

Mrs Axell said: “On Friday, he was going to visit his best friend in Stroud. He set off at 11.20am and should have been there by 12.20pm.

“When I couldn’t get through on his phone, I just thought they were outside working on the bikes, so I went to sleep because I work nights.”

But at 2pm the friend phoned Mrs Axell to ask where her husband was.

She said: “It sounds silly, but I had a gut feeling.

“I rang the police and asked if there had been any accidents, but they said there hadn’t been.

“So I went out in the car. I knew which way he would have gone.

“And when I saw the road was blocked, I had another gut feeling.

“The police took me down to the scene.”

Mr Axell had been trapped underneath a van and freed by firefighters. He had been airlifted to the Frenchay Hospital in Bristol before she arrived.

Mrs Axell said: “When I saw the bike, it was the worst feeling.”

The 56-year-old lorry driver, who works for distribution firm Rapier, suffered broken legs, a broken pelvis and both lungs were punctured.

He also had a broken collarbone and ribs, and damage to an eye.

Mrs Axell said: “He has now had three operations.

“All they tell me is that he’s not out of the woods yet.

“He’s not in a good way at all.”

The couple have lived together in Carterton for the past 12 years and have been married for seven years.

She is now sleeping in a room near the ward.

She added: “At some point I’ll have to go home. There’s a mortgage to pay and life goes on.”

Police are now appealing for witnesses of the accident.

They would especially like to talk to anyone who saw a second motorcyclist, described as a riding “large powerful motorcycle”, overtake a heavy goods vehicle as they headed in the direction of Cirencester, at about 12.10pm.

Mrs Axell, who works for care organisation the Elizabeth Finn Trust, said: “There was a motorcyclist and a lorry driver who didn’t stop.

“If you had seen the road, you would have known they must have realised he was hurt. It’s a straight road, and quite narrow, but nobody stopped.”

Anyone with any information is asked to contact Gloucestershire Police on 0845 090 1234 quoting incident number 207, April 8.