A lorry driver was trapped in his truck for nearly four hours after it smashed into a house on a rural Highland road this morning.
Rescuers had to erect a heavy-duty prop to stop masonry collapsing on to the cab of the vehicle as they battled to free him.
The 37-year-old driver was conscious throughout the delicate operation following the crash at Balnain on the A831 Drumnadrochit-Cannich road.
He could be seen sitting up in his cab as firefighters swarmed around the vehicle with hydraulic cutting gear.
More than 50 emergency services personnel were sent to the scene, including members of a medical trauma team from Glasgow, who were flown to the scene by helicopter
The air ambulance was also sent, along with five fire crews from Inverness, Drumnadrochit and Cannich, and a heavy rescue unit.
The house, which was undergoing renovation, was empty at the time of the accident at 8am.
Police said the lorry driver, who is thought to be from Aberdeenshire, suffered facial injuries and was being treated at Raigmore Hospital in Inverness.
The westbound lane of the A831 remained closed as plans were drawn up to recover the lorry, which was left embedded in the two-storey house.
The HGV was laden with timber and heading east towards Drumnadrochit when the accident happened.
It is believed the lorry collided with a westbound vehicle – an unladen timber truck – before ploughing into the front of the house.
The driver of the second lorry suffered only facial injuries.
The driver who was trapped was taken to hospital by road ambulance.
