Scout ‘plunged 200ft to his death down cliff’
WALKER TELLS INQUEST HE SAW TEENAGER LOSE FOOTING
A SCOUTS weekend ended in tragedy when a teenager fell 200 feet to his death, an inquest heard.
Benjamin Leonard, 16, from Stockport, fell to his death as he tried to descend from the rocky promontory at the Great Orme in Llandudno, north Wales.
A planned walk up Snowdon had been called off that day because of bad weather.
The inquest in Ruthin heard how Ben and two friends had become separated from other members of the Reddish Explorers Scout group who were camping in the area for two nights in August 2018.
The jury was told how the nine Scouts and three leaders visited Llandudno instead because wind and rain was forecast.
After spending time in the town the whole group planned to walk up footpaths to the summit but Ben and two friends turned off the path which went past the ski slope and headed along the top of the cliff overlooking Marine Drive.
Outlining the background at the start of the hearing, David Pojur, assistant coroner for North Wales East and Central, said they reached a point where Ben said they should head down to the road and he insisted he could find the route down even though his friends said it was dangerous.
Detective Inspector Paul Terry, a qualified mountain leader, showed video footage of the area on the north side of the Orme where the paths are merely sheep or goat tracks along steeply-sided terraces.
He described it as ‘high-risk terrain’ where, if he had been in charge of any group, he would have warned them to be careful. The officer said the grass and limestone in the area was very slippery.
Asked by Richard Crockford, representing the Scouts Association and the three leaders, whether the description of the Orme as a country park was misleading, he replied: “It is a complex ground which starts at the shoreline.”
Phillip Taylor, who was walking along Marine Drive, told the inquest how he spotted the teenager high above him walking along a ledge. He said: “I would have shouted to him if I’d thought he could hear me but he was too far away.” He watched Ben for about 10 minutes then saw him lose his footing. He slid down one grassy bank, over one sheer edge, down another bank and then onto the road below – a total of about 200 feet. Mr Taylor, an experienced walker, said he knew the area well and realised that the paths were merely sheep tracks.
An air ambulance arrived but Ben was certified dead at the scene.
His mother Jackie Leonard, of Thornley Road North, Stockport, described him as ‘a wonderful boy and a fantastic son and brother.’
The teenager had received his GCSE results only three days earlier and was looking forward to studying film studies at A-level.
He was a keen scriptwriter and a member of NK Theatre Arts in Stockport.
He had been a member of the local Scouts for several years and Mrs Leonard said that although he wasn’t sporty he enjoyed the banter and camaraderie.
● Proceeding
I would have shouted to him if I’d thought he could hear me but he was too far away Witness Phillip Taylor