The Courier & Advertiser (Fife Edition)
Icy road to blame for bus driver’s death in three-vehicle collision
A school bus driver from Dundee was killed in a crash after a car skidded on ice and hit his vehicle, a sheriff has ruled.
Ian Fordyce, 68, suffered fatal injuries after his bus carrying 13 pupils was hit by an Audi car.
Mr Fordyce had driven buses for 40 years before the fatal incident in December 2017 near the Maryculter Bridge on the B9077 near Aberdeen.
Children from Lathallan School in Johnshaven were on the single-decker bus at the time of the incident but none suffered any serious injuries.
A fatal accident inquiry at Aberdeen Sheriff Court heard an Audi A7 driven by James Craddock failed to stop and give way at a junction after ice on the surface of the road made braking difficult.
This caused the school bus, a lorry and the Audi to collide with fatal consequences.
Mr Fordyce, who was
not wearing a seatbelt, suffered a ruptured artery and fractures of the pelvis, spine, ribs and both legs.
Emergency services raced to the scene but Mr Fordyce could not be saved.
In a written ruling, Sheriff Andrew Miller said: “In my judgment, the dominant cause of this fatal collision was simply the presence of ice on the untreated surface of the unclassified road on its approach to the junction with the B9077, to an extent which Mr Craddock had not anticipated, as a result of which Mr Craddock was unable to bring his vehicle to a stop at the junction despite driving in an appropriate manner, and despite his efforts to bring his vehicle to a stop prior to the junction.”
The sheriff said Mr Fordyce would most likely have died even if he had been wearing his seatbelt and that he did not believe Aberdeenshire Council were to blame for the ice on the road.
The inquiry made no formal recommendations.
Following Mr Fordyce’s death, his family said: “Ian will be a sorely missed brother, father, grandfather and friend.”
Lathallan School head teacher Richard Toley said: “He was a largerthan-life character who was extremely popular with our pupils. He will be missed by us all.”