‘7-day weeks’ Black Friday courier found dead at wheel
THE sister of a driver who died in his cab after reportedly working sevenday weeks in the run-up to today’s Black Friday has spoken of her shock.
Warren Norton was found slumped over the steering wheel at a DPD depot on Wednesday morning. It was claimed the single dad of one had worked up to 14 hours a day for weeks – but DPD said he was not put under pressure to do long hours.
Workers in Dartford, Kent thought Warren, 49, was asleep in his Citroen van.When he did not respond to their effort to wake him, they broke a window and pulled him out, and a defibrillator was used but he was dead.
A source said: “Warren has been working all the hours under the sun recently to deliver as many parcels as he could.” He was understood to have a 14-year-old daughter.
His sister Lynden said she was stunned when she found out that her adopted brother had died.
The mental health counsellor said yesterday: “I’m gutted about his death. I’m in disbelief. He was such a hard worker, a real grafter.”
Lynden, 60, of Gravesend, continued: “I’m so shocked. He’s left a young daughter behind and it’s simply horrendous. I just feel for that poor little girl.”
A DPD spokesman said: “We are deeply saddened by the death of Warren Norton. Mr Norton was a self-employed driver working for a supplier to DPD and was well-known and regarded. Our thoughts are with his friends and family at this time.
“We absolutely deny any allegations of pressure to work long hours, and can confirm that as a responsible carrier we monitor every driver’s hours for legal and safety reasons.
“Mr Norton was working on average five days a week for DPD and the hours he worked were well within the legal limits.” The cause of death remains unknown so far.