PLEA TO TRUCKERS AFTER DRIVER DIED IN A500 HORROR SMASH
HGV with puncture had stopped in ‘live’ lane
THE grieving family of a van driver who crashed into a stationary HGV on the A500 are calling for all truckers to ring 999 if they break down in a ‘live’ lane.
Their plea came after Roman Parsons died when he ploughed into the back of the articulated lorry.
The impact effectively split his seven-and-a-half-ton vehicle in half, leaving him with multiple injuries.
It emerged that the other driver had suffered a tyre blowout and had pulled up near the turn-off for Wolstanton Retail Park while he waited for someone to come out and repair it.
As there was no hard shoulder, he was stuck in the outer lane for half-an-hour – with his hazard lights flashing – before the accident happened.
An inquest yesterday heard how it was only by chance that a passing motorist called the police. But by then it was too late as officers were still en route to the breakdown scene when Roman died.
In a statement issued on behalf of the family after the hearing, his sister Rebecca said: “What hurts the most is that my brother’s death could have been prevented.”
Mr Parsons, aged 30, from Dilhorne, worked as a courier for Fenton-based Solidor Ltd and had just set off to make a delivery to the Leeds area.
It was shortly after 5am on November 24 last year when he turned onto the A500. The Iveco box van he was driving was thought to be going at 56mph – its limit – when the Mercedes lorry, carrying fresh produce, appeared ahead of him.
PC Sarah Mulvey, forensic collision investigator, said: “The Mercedes would have been in view for 700 metres – approximately 28 seconds.”
It’s not known why Mr Parsons failed to take evasive action in time. The inquest was told it was possible he’d been momentarily distracted.
Checks on his mobile phone showed there were no calls or texts in the minutes before the crash. But he had posted an entry on Facebook before 5am and the app was still open.
HGV driver Carney Daniel said in a statement: “I felt a heavy impact to the rear of the truck and was thrown forward.”
The inquest heard Mr Daniel got out and saw the van was embedded in his vehicle.
“I was in a state of shock, but had no physical injuries,” he recalled. “I do still have flashbacks of the incident. I’m always saying to myself what could I have done differently. But I don’t think I could have done anything else.”
He said he hadn’t tried to drive the HGV any further after the blowout as he was worried about leaving debris on the carriageway.
He had alerted his boss to the breakdown, but only called 999 after the actual crash.
Several other motorists had come across the stationary lorry minutes earlier. One of them told police the hazard lights had been clearly visible from a distance.
But another driver, Rosie Turner, only saw them close-up. She said: “They were not as bright as expected. I quickly pulled out into lane two.” When she later heard about the fatal accident, she ‘went cold’.
North Staffordshire assistant coroner Sarah Murphy concluded Mr Parsons died as a result of a road traffic collision. She said: “Unfortunately, we’ll never know why Mr Parsons ran into the rear of the stationary vehicle.”
Paying tribute to him afterwards, his family described him as ‘caring, loving and talented’.
They now want other drivers to call 999 if they break down and can’t pull off a carriageway.
Their statement added: “Our hope from this is that every lorry or truck driver follows this procedure to prevent tragic heartache like we have experienced. No family should suffer like this.”