Paramedic died when dustman slammed 15-tonne truck into back of ambulance response car as he chatted on phone behind the wheel

A paramedic was killed when a dustman chatting on his mobile phone ploughed his 15-tonne truck into the back of an emergency response car. 

Grandfather Andy Evans, 56, was killed instantly as Adam Lipowski's Mercedes refuse truck hit his car and sent it flying into the path of an oncoming vehicle.

Today, Lipowski, 44, was jailed for five years after he was found guilty of causing death by dangerous driving following the fatal crash on the A4074 in South Oxfordshire in September 2013.

Grandfather Andy Evans, 56, (left) was killed instantly as the Mercedes refuse truck drive by Adam Lipowski, 44, (right) hit his car and sent it flying into the path of an oncoming vehicle

Oxford Crown Court had been told that Polish national Lipowski had been driving at 55mph on the single carriageway as he spoke to a friend of his mobile phone.

The crash took place outside the gates of the exclusive Oratory School in Oxfordshire, where Mr Evans and his colleague Michael Jennings were responding to an emergency call. 

The road was straight, and the conditions clear, but Lipowski apparently did not see the Subaru paramedic car brake and indicate as it waited to turn right to enter the school.

Travelling at more than 35mph, Lipowski hit the stationary car, shunting it across the road and into the car of a Ford Focus being driven by Neil and Sharon Harbour.

Mrs Harbour told the court in a statement that she could not help but blame herself for the crash because the paramedics were waiting for the couple to turn right when the lorry hit them.

Mr Recorder Nicholas Goodwin QC told the court that she and her husband were completely 'blameless' for the tragic crash that ensued.

Instead, expert analysis revealed that Lipowski applied the brakes for only half a second, while mobile phone records indicated he was still on his phone right up to the moment of impact.

The court was told that Mr Evans's grandchildren called him 'Grandad Ambulance' and were left 'heartbroken' by his death

The court heard he later hid the phone and some headphones in a bag in the lorry's cab, initially claiming that he had not been on the phone at all.

He later said that whilst he had been chatting with a friend, the signal had cut out several minutes before the crash.

During his trial he also told a jury that Mr Jennings had braked suddenly without warning, and that he had had no opportunity to stop before hitting the paramedic car. 

In a victim impact statement read to the court, Mr Evans's wife of 17 years, Sally said: 'As usual, Andy had left saying he loved me and would see me later, but that didn't happen.

'Now my life is a struggle and challenging both emotionally and physically.

'I don't want to get up, eat drink or take my medication. I constantly think if I'd made another drink and given him another kiss and cuddle and delayed him from leaving would he still be alive?

'When I hear a siren I always look to see if it's my husband, lover and best friend driving. A big part of me has died with him.'

She said the couple's grandchildren - who knew Mr Evans as 'Grandad Ambulance' - had been left 'heartbroken' by his death.

'Nannies are supposed to protect them and I didn't,' she added.

The judge also heard from his daughter Rachel, who described her paramedic father as 'my hero.'

'I still find it hard to believe that my dad is never coming back. I'd give anything to have one last hug and tell him how much I love him,' she said.

Fellow medic Mr Jennings suffered severe head and leg injuries in the collision. 

In a statement the retired Army mechanic told the court his injuries had made it very difficult for him to look after his wife, who requires around the clock care after suffering a stroke.

He said: 'My personality has been changed. I'm short-tempered, lacking in confidence and I'm intolerant of my young grandchildren whereas before I would tolerate the silly little things that they do. They are four and six years old.

The crash took place outside the gates of the exclusive Oratory School in Oxfordshire (pictured), where Mr Evans and his colleague Michael Jennings were responding to an emergency call

'Andy was a very nice man, he was a friend and colleague. Lipowski denied any wrongdoing even though he must have known he was at fault.

'Although he didn't go out that day to cause this, he should have taken responsibility for his actions.'

Father-of-three Lipowski was convicted by a jury following a trial in March. Today, his family broke down in tears as the court heard they will now lose their house because of the loss of income caused by his conviction.

Recorder Goodwin said: 'This was a tragic and wholly avoidable accident. You will understand the devastation this kind of fatality causes.

'Mr Evans was the passenger in a Subaru car being driven to provide medical assistance at the Oratory School.

'I have no doubt that the driver of that car, Mr Jennings, indicated and slowed down gradually to turn right into the school entrance. He was driving lawfully and considerately.

'You were driving your Mercedes refuse truck some distance behind that car. The conditions were dry and clear.

Mr Recorder Nicholas Goodwin QC, sitting at Oxford Crown Court (pictured) told Lipowski that the crash was down to him using a mobile phone

'At a point some 311 metres or 14 seconds from impact you were travelling at 55mph in a 40mph zone. This was not therefore a momentary lapse of concentration, because you must have missed all signs that the Subaru had slowed down and was braking.

'I am satisfied that the reason for this accident lies in your use of your mobile phone. I am sure that you were holding your phone and were either in the middle of speaking to your friend or were trying to re-establish the connection.'

Passing sentence, the judge added: 'Many will think that such a sentence is low in circumstances where an innocent man has died. The sentence I have passed however follows the sentencing guidelines.

'It cannot ever compensate for Mr Evans' death.'

Lipowski, of Reading, Berkshire was also disqualified from driving for five years.

Speaking after the hearing Mrs Evans said: 'Life is very empty for me without my husband Andy. I no longer have a husband, no one to hold and love me, no one to smile at me and make me laugh, no one to support me physically with my disability or mentally. No-one in the house that made it a home.

'Rachel has lost her dad, a dad who loved her unconditionally, even when she was naughty as a child. Our grandchildren have lost their Granddad Ambulance. A granddad who always played jokes on them, a granddad who played games and always insisted he won. A granddad who got them over-excited just before their bed time.

'Stop and think before using your mobile while driving, you could kill an innocent person. Someone who has done you no harm and leaves a family devastated.'