A RUNAWAY dog caused chaos on Winchester High Street this morning. 

A black greyhound which was originally attached to a chair, outside West Cornwall Pasty, got spooked and ran down the street and hurtled into an innocent bystander at breakneck speed.

Chronicle reporter, Michael Carr was talking to Big Issue seller Kevin Collick as the incident unfolded.

Mr Collick tried to get the dog, which broke loose of the chair after it hit a man at high-speed.

The greyhound was then seen hurtling down the High Street past Pret A Manger, some people have said they saw it run down the Broadway and then past Winchester City Mill.

Immediately after the man was struck by the dog, Mr Collick and Thomas Harvey from West Cornwall Food Company helped him.

The injured man suffered a cut leg and bruises.

Michael Carr said: “Out of nowhere the dog was running like it was scared with and its lead was still attached to the chair, I stepped out of the way and saw it hit the man who fell awkwardly.

“It could have been much worse if the dog had hit a child or an elderly person.”

Thomas Harvey, who ran after the dog, described how the incident unfolded at around 10am.

Mr Harvey said: “First of all I was looking of the shop window and I heard a chair fall over and I made sure that no-one had fallen out of the chair and I saw a dog was attached to the chair and it was spooked when the chair fell and the dog ran out into the High Street and I think everyone then was in a bit of shock.

“I went after the dog and everyone was stood still wondering what was going on and I thought I have got to try and stop the dog because the dog could take someone out and in the worst case scenario hit a baby in a pram.”

“I was trying to get the dog, but I saw it had hit someone and I wanted to see if the gentleman was okay.”

Mr Collick, who attempted to stop the dog, said: “It was running towards us with the chair and I could see the danger, that a dog at that speed could take someone out.

"Me being me I wanted to stop it but a man got in the way, then I made sure that the man that was hit was okay."

It is understood that the dog's owner is a woman who also ran after it.

Minutes later two police officers were taking down details of the incident outside The Buttercross and were looking for the dog.

A friend of the owner on social media posted that the greyhound had been found.

She said: "She has been to the vets one claw missing and a couple of marks on her rear but nothing a good rest and food won't help.

"She was found at the bottom of Winchester by a lovely man, about half a mile from where she lives."