A coroner has ruled that the death of a 93-year-old Penrith man hit by a car as he walked across the A66 after his own vehicle broke down was a tragic accident.
Retired architect Jack Buckingham was with his wife, Eunice, on August 5 last year. After an AA worker who examined their car earlier that morning amid concerns had concluded there was nothing wrong with it, the couple went for a short drive.
But as they travelled on the A66 dual carriageway east of Penrith, at around 11am, the car failed or stalled near the junction for Flusco, close to Stainton village.
Mr Buckingham left his wife and vehicle to cross the road and speak with an HGV driver. But as he walked back towards her, while in the middle of the road, he was hit by an eastbound Skoda Fabia. Dash cam from another vehicle showed him possibly stumble just before the tragic impact.
Skoda driver Raja Kumar was returning alone to his home in Buxton, Derbyshire, after a Lakes holiday.
Feeling fresh and alert he had his Skoda’s cruise control set to 70mph. “I suddenly noticed with horror a man was standing in the road in front of me,” said Mr Kumar in a statement read to an inquest into Mr Buckingham’s death this morning. The pedestrian was around two car lengths away and seemed “a bit dazed and unsure what direction to go in”. “I felt a terrible impact as I braked,” he recalled.
Mr Buckingham suffered catastrophic multiple injuries and died a short time later despite the assistance of several passing doctors and clinicians.
A distressed Mr Kumar also said: “My heart goes out to Jack’s family, especially his wife who I gather was in the car at the time of the incident. They must be heartbroken. My thoughts are very much with them.”
Assistant coroner Robert Cohen recorded an official cause of death as road traffic collision, expressing his profound sympathy to Mr Buckingham’s family while also praising Mr Kumar’s “very gracious and generous spirited manner”.
“I can only imagine the horror that he has experienced but it is entirely to his credit that he has given such a detailed account and expressed such genuine sympathy for Jack’s family,” concluded Mr Cohen.
“It’s not my function as a corner to apportion blame or liability though for the avoidance of doubt, even if that had been my function, I very much doubt I would have had any blame to apportion here. This was a tragic accident.”
In a statement, Mr Buckingham’s daughter, Julie Inkersole, had said: “He was full of fun and laughter. He loved nothing more than making anybody smile. My father will be sadly missed by all who knew him.”
