Storm Doris: man dies three days after car was struck by tree
|
Version 0 of 1. A man in his 80s has died in hospital three days after his car was struck by a falling tree during Storm Doris, police said. The man was the front-seat passenger of a Ford Focus being driven near Church Stretton in Shropshire. His wife, who was in the back of the car, was unhurt. Police have asked for witnesses to the accident, which happened as winds of more than 100mph pummelled some parts of the UK. West Mercia police said: “A red Ford Focus was being driven along the A49 about a mile north of Church Stretton shortly before 9.30am on Thursday when the car was struck by a falling tree. “The front-seat passenger – a man in his 80s – was taken to North Staffordshire hospital with critical injuries. He subsequently died on Sunday . Officers are keen to speak with anyone who saw the incident or who can help with the investigation. At the time of the incident, West Midlands ambulance service said the driver of the car suffered neck and chest pain and was assessed at the scene before being taken to Royal Shrewsbury hospital. The incident took place 40 miles west of Wolverhampton, where university worker Tahnie Martin, 29, died at about noon on Thursday after being struck by flying debris during the high winds. She suffered fatal head injuries after being struck by a large piece of wood while walking past a Starbucks cafe in the city centre. There were two other fatal accidents in which the storm may have played a part. A 32-year-old mother died in Swindon after a collision with a road sweeper while a lorry driver died in a crash in New Cross, south-east London. The Met Office said the UK was in for a chilly and unsettled week with the vestiges of Storm Ewan swinging back across Northern Ireland and northern parts of England during Tuesday as a weakening weather system. Though the Met Office is not expecting to have to issue weather warnings, a spell of rain and hill snow in some areas is anticipated. Chief meteorologist Andy Page said: “Polar maritime air is becoming established across the UK with colder conditions expected for the next few days, but nothing unusual for late winter. The week will be characterised by wet and windy spells across the southern half of the UK. “The rain could turn to snow particularly over higher ground of northern England, Northern Ireland and Wales. Sunshine and showers will develop between weather systems. The north will see drier and colder conditions with a few wintry showers. Frost will be widespread here by night, with a risk of fog and some icy stretches.” This unsettled weather is likely to continue next week as frontal systems continue to move across the UK from the south or south-west, bringing wet and occasionally windy weather at times, which could turn to snow over northern hills. |