OAP, 91, tragically drowns after driving into a canal as council warned over road safety
AN OAP has died after drowning in a canal as a coroner issues an urgent warning to council officials.
Doreen Turner, 91, tragically lost her life after driving her car into the body of water in Chichester, West Sussex.
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The horror crash happened on November 1 last year and sparked a police investigation.
A coroner has now ruled West Sussex County Council must install more safety measures along the road.
A probe found there was no forensic evidence of any mechanical issues in Doreen's car.
Officers also concluded the 91-year-old had suffered no impairments that would affect her driving.
However the kerb at the end of the road was found to measure shorter than the standard height requirement.
A council spokesperson said: "We are currently reviewing this site in consultation with Sussex Police and will be responding to the coroner accordingly."
Coroner Joanne Andrews could not determine the exact reason why Doreen's car left the road.
But she warned the council "action should be taken".
"In my opinion, action should be taken to prevent future deaths and I believe your organisation has the power to take such action," she said.
This incident marks the second fatal crash in the same area within the past five years.
The coroner said the inquest heard there were "no devices present to prevent a vehicle which passes over the kerbstones from entering the canal".
Beyond the kerb there is a five-foot section of grass before the canal starts.
West Sussex County Council has until June 25 to respond officially to the coroner's concerns.
Earlier this month we reported the body of an unidentified woman in her 50s was pulled from a canal.
Cops had rushed to the Lee Navigation in Homerton, east London, at around 11.40am, following reports of a body in the canal.
No arrests have yet been made in connection with her death.
Elsewhere, an inquest heard how a two-year-old boy tragically drowned in a canal just as his family were in the process of moving house due to fears of living so close to the water.
Jayce Olutola was found by a police officer after he went missing from his home in Ettingshall, Wolverhampton, on August 11 last year.
And, a teenage boy who tragically died after jumping into a canal was pictured for the first time this month.
Delvin Musakwa, 13, was pulled from the water after jumping into the canal in Exeter, Devon, on May 5.
Police said the death is not being treated as suspicious, and added they will prepare a file for the coroner.
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