Beryl Barrett: Woman, 87, died after falling over pothole while crossing the road

A coroner has recommended a system to prioritize emergency road repairs after an elderly woman tripped over a damaged road surface while crossing the road.

Beryl Barrett, 87, died on Christmas Day last year, six days after the wheels of her walking frame became stuck in the road in Church Street, Warsop, Nottinghamshire, while she was using a pedestrian crossing.

Nottingham Coroner’s Court heard Ms Barrett broke her hip in the autumn and died of bronchopneumonia at King’s Mill Hospital in Sutton-in-Ashfield.

Deputy coroner Nathanael Hartley concluded on Monday that her death was accidental but warned there was a risk of more fatal events.

It also found that the defect in the road that caused Ms Barrett to trip and fall was not bad enough to require repair.

Miss Barrett was initially thought to have tripped over a pothole, which was not detected by investigators 18 days before her fall, but the inquest heard there was a misunderstanding as to which road defect caused her to fall.

Steve Walton, pre-construction manager for Via East Midlands, which provides road maintenance services to Nottinghamshire County Council, gave evidence to the inquest.

He first told the hearing that a pothole thought to have caused his fall was overlooked during a road inspection on December 1 because the inspector did not think it was deep enough to warrant filling, but did not take into account the lower threshold for potholes at pedestrian crossings.

After reviewing dashcam footage of the fall during his evidence, Mr Walton explained that the pensioner had not tripped over the pothole but rather a less serious road defect that did not require repair.

Mr Walton did not explain what the defect in the road was.

He told the inquest: “No actionable fault was recorded at the time.”

At the conclusion of the inquest, Mr Hartley said: “The front wheel of the tricycle chassis became wedged in the road, causing him to lose his balance and fall.

“The defect thought to be responsible was not actually the cause of the fall.”

The hole initially thought to have caused her to trip and fall was filled on January 2 but was not permanently repaired.

The coroner added: “The area where the walker wheel was pinched was not an actionable defect at that point.

“While I have concluded that it is not actionable, this does not mean that the incident is not serious and does not require the attention of Via East Midlands and Nottinghamshire County Council.”

Mr Walton told the inquest that potholes 40mm deep on carriageways or 20mm deep on pedestrian crossings needed to be repaired.

Mr Hartley concluded that the fall “contributed very little to Beryl’s death, because without it she would not have died when she did.”

The coroner said he was concerned about “a future risk to others” and would issue a report to Nottinghamshire County Council, Via East Midlands and the UK Roads Liaison Group (UKRLG) on preventing future deaths.

The coroner said: “They do not appear to have a process that allows them to prioritize referrals that alert them to concerns about the condition of the highways.”

He said no investigation was carried out on the road where Ms Barrett fell for 12 days, although it was suspected she had tripped over a pothole.

Mr Hartley said there was no system in place to prioritize the most serious road defects for urgent inspection.

He added that UKRLG, which publishes a code of practice for the management of roads, makes no specific advice about vulnerable pedestrians using small wheeled walking aids.

Ms Barrett’s daughter, Marie Rickman, told the coroner that her mother “loved life” and was involved in the local community and church.

He said: “He was going out every day, he couldn’t stand being inside.

“He was active, he was in shape, he kept himself going.”