Man fighting for life after "jumping in and out of traffic" on M3 before being hit by car - update

Police and paramedics rushed to the scene of the incident on the M3 northbound on Saturday morning (August 31) around 6.30am. The carriageway between junctions 9 and 8 near Winchester was shut while officers carried out an investigation into the collision between a car and a man who was left in a critical condition. 

A car in the middle of the carriageway was left with a large hole in its windscreen following the incident, a motorist travelling in the opposite direction has told The News. “The car’s windscreen had a large hole in it, presumably from the impact. It looked pretty bad. There were still lots of police on the road around midday.”

Hampshire and Isle of Wight Constabulary previously said they received reports of a man “jumping in and out of traffic on the A33” at 6.23am - which runs parallel to the M3. Police then got a call from a woman who was driving on the A33 when a male jumped in front of her vehicle and tried to open the door.

The collision on the M3, involving a car and a pedestrian, happened between 6.30am and 6.35am. The pedestrian matched the description of the male seen a short time before on the A33. 

Four days on from the incident police have said the man remains in hospital in a life-threatening condition. 

A 37-year-old man from Southampton was arrested on suspicion of driving a vehicle whilst unfit through drugs. He has been released under investigation.

Police constable Haithum Zubaidi, said on Saturday: “We are appealing for anyone who saw the man on the A33 or the M3 to come forward and speak to us. Were you driving in the area at the time? Do you have a dashcam fitted to your vehicle? If you have any information please come forward and speak to us.”

Anyone with information is advised to call 101, quoting the reference number 44240373544.