Ellie Ames 17 October 2023

Council's failure to fix pothole blamed for man’s death

Councils failure to fix pothole blamed for man’s death  image
Image: Edgar G Biehle / Shutterstock.com.

A man died after falling from his bike when it entered a crack in the road that had been identified to Lancashire County Council, a coroner has found.

Preston Coroner’s Court heard that Harry Colledge, 84, died on 2 January this year from injuries he sustained in the fall and was an ‘otherwise fit and healthy man’.

Lancashire CC had been notified of the crack on Island Lane, Winmarleigh in September 2022, but the failure of two highway inspections to 'identify' it meant the hazard remained on the road, the court heard.

The council’s chief executive, Angie Ridgwell, said: ‘We are aware of the coroner’s findings in the inquest into the death into Mr Colledge.

‘Our thoughts and condolences are with Mr Colledge’s family, and we can assure them that we will be considering the findings of this inquest thoroughly and carefully.’

If this article was of interest, then check out our feature, 'The great pothole repair failure'.

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