BRITAIN:A motorist who witnessed the crash which killed Diana, Princess of Wales, recalled yesterday that he saw a "major white flash" in the Alma underpass. François Levistre was driving in front of the Mercedes when the fatal crash happened in Paris in August 1997.
Speaking by video link from Paris for the inquest into the deaths of Diana and her lover Dodi Fayed, Mr Levistre described how the Princess's car was overtaken by a motorbike inside the underpass. He said he saw a very bright flash - like the light from a police radar - and it had been directed at the Mercedes.
Mr Levistre said: "I realised there was this major white flash of the motorbike in front of the Mercedes, in front of the car. I was nearly at the exit of the tunnel and I realised that because I heard the noise of the motorbike within the tunnel." He said the flash was like when you "switch on the lights and you can see clearly".
"I just wondered what happened because the light was like you were caught by the police in a radar," he added. Ian Burnett, counsel for the inquest, asked: "This flash was very bright?" Mr Levistre replied: "Very. The light even came into my car." He added: "The light was not directed towards me. It was directed towards the car which was behind." The witness described how the Mercedes veered from side to side before it turned around. "When I saw the light, I looked into the mirror . . . I saw the car going from left to right to left again to get within the pillar. The car had no light any longer. Everything was switched off."