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Nails
found in tyres of car in death crash
Gazette & Herald
9th March 2006 pg 13
www.gazetteandherald.co.uk
THE car in which RAF Lyneham serviceman Neil Griffiths died
had three nails embedded in one tyre, an inquest has heard.
Mr Griffiths, 30, died in a head on collision with an articulated
lorry on the B4069 near Sutton Benger on July
28 last year. The inquest at Devizes' Magistrates' Court
on Friday heard that Mr Griffiths' car had oversteered on
a sharp bend near Frampton Farm.
Other tyres were found to be well below the recommended pressure
and the inquest was told that the accident was largely due
to under-inflation. Mr Griffiths' blue Renault Clio hit a
lorry travelling in the opposite direction while negotiating
the lefthand bend.
The car veered onto the wrong side of the road and Mr Griffiths
was killed instantly.
In a statement lorry driver Derek Brown, of Whitestone, Herefordshire,
said: "I was a few feet into the bend when there was
this flash in front of me. I recall two headlights right in
front." |
"I don't know where they came from. Within a second of seeing
the headlights, there was a loud bang. I didn't see the car again
until I looked in the mirrors to see what hit me. The whole incident
lasted just a few seconds."
Collision investigator Ian Soulsby found one of the Clio's tyres
measured 22.5psi and another 20psi. It was not possible to assess
the pressure of the other tyres, including the one with the nails,
before the accident. The recommended tyre pressures for the Clio
would have been 29psi.
Both lan Soulsby and his colleague Pc Stephen Cox said it was unlikely
Mr Griffiths was aware of the low pressures.
Mr Griffiths appeared to have been well under the speed limit but,
with the under-inflation, the over steer would have caused loss
of control. A verdict of accidental death was recorded.
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Gazette & Herald
www.gazetteandherald.co.uk
With thanks to the Gazette &
Herald, your local weekly newspaper available Thursdays,
serving Wiltshire across three centuries. The excellent newspaper
has gained "Newspaper Society Community Newspaper of
the Year" Award.
You can catch on the news and information online |
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RAF Lyneham
www.raf.mod.uk/raflyneham
with special thanks to the Corporate Communication and Media
Office for the picture of Niel Griffiths. |
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