Ambulance raced past me...on way to accident that had killed my wife
Jogger died after young driver mounted pavement
A MAN told a court yesterday he had no idea that an ambulance that sped past as he was going to work was responding to an accident in which his wife died.
Rob Baines, 53, had earlier received a text from his student son saying his wife Sharon had not returned from her morning run.
Accountant Mrs Baines had been struck and fatally injured by a car as she waited to cross the road.
At Edinburgh Sheriff Court yesterday, the young driver whose vehicle had mounted the pavement before hitting the 53-year-old, was sentenced to 300 hours of unpaid work and banned from driving for 32 months.
Chloe McCole, 21, of Mayfield, Midlothian, admitted causing death by careless driving. But the nursery worker, who was 19 at the time, was unable to explain why her car mounted the kerb.
The court heard how mother of two Mrs Baines has been out for a morning jog in Dalkeith, Midlothian, on December 12, 2017, when the incident happened. Mr Baines, from Dalkeith, said: ‘I was on the bus to work and got a message from my son Alistair saying Sharon hadn’t come home – then an ambulance went past. I could see the blue lights continue ahead. I started feeling like the walls were closing in and my heart was pounding in my chest.
‘I tried to just stay calm so I kept messaging Alistair, but when I finally got to work I got a call from him saying the police were at our house to take us to hospital. I felt numb. My whole world just fell apart.’
CCTV footage showed Mrs Baines, wearing hi-vis running gear, waiting to cross at the junction of Melville Gate Road and Old Dalkeith Road at 6.45am.
McCole’s silver Ford Fiesta then mounted the kerb and struck the jogger. Mrs Baines, who suffered head and neck injuries, later died at Edinburgh Royal Infirmary.
A police investigation found there were no adverse weather or road conditions at the time.
There was also no evidence McCole had been speeding or using her phone. Sheriff Alistair Noble told her: ‘The consequences here were devastating. Mrs Baines lost her life and the opportunity to see her children grow up.
‘It is plain to me you are genuinely remorseful. Assessing all circumstances it doesn’t occur to me that a custodial sentence would be appropriate here.’
Mr Baines recalled how he and Alistair, 19, arrived at the hospital and were told his wife had undergone emergency surgery and was in intensive care.
He contacted his student daughter Megan, 21, who then joined them at the hospital.
The family spoke with medics and faced the devastating reality of turning off Mrs Baines’ life support machine.
‘That day passed in a blur,’ Mr Baines said. ‘The hospital staff were great and did everything they could but the consultant said they were simply prolonging her death rather than her life.’
In a statement released through his solicitor, Mr Baines responded to McCole’s conviction, saying: ‘I think about how similarly aged Chloe is to my kids and how I’d feel if they were in her shoes.
‘Chloe didn’t set out to kill anyone that morning – I do believe she is sorry and this will no doubt affect her for the rest of her life, whether she’s locked up or not.
‘Ultimately, my partner and friend and my children’s mum has been stolen from us. Sharon and I were at a point in life when we could spend some time together.
‘This optimistic future was gone in the blink of an eye. I can’t see myself or the kids ever getting over this.’
‘My whole world just fell apart’