A mobility scooter user died after he fell asleep and drove off a seafront promenade, falling about 5ft on to the sand below.
John Gray sustained multiple rib fractures after his mobility scooter drove off the promenade, which had no barrier, at Felixstowe beach in Suffolk. The rib fractures led to respiratory failure and he died at Ipswich hospital four days later on 13 July 2022.
Suffolk’s senior coroner, Nigel Parsley, has written to the local authority, East Suffolk council, stating concerns that more lives could be lost unless a barrier or warning signs are installed. An earlier inquest concluded that Gray’s death was an accident.
The coroner wrote in a prevention of future deaths report that Gray died “after his mobility scooter drove off the promenade at Felixstowe beach, after John had fallen asleep”.
Evidence was heard at the inquest that the distance from the edge of the promenade to the sand was prone to change and a system was in place to monitor this.
It was acknowledged that unusually high tide conditions or “weather activity” could significantly change the drop height in a short period of time.
Parsley said: “It was acknowledged that individuals on mobility scooters were known to regularly access and use the promenade. Due to the demographics of the local area, it was acknowledged that the use of mobility scooters on the promenade may increase in the future.”
Evidence was also heard from a mobility scooter supplier and engineer that drivers falling asleep while using mobility scooters was not uncommon and happened “more frequently than the general public might think”.
“The supplier explained that this often led to accidents, leading to damage to the mobility scooters, which required repair,” Parsley said.
East Suffolk council must respond to the report by 15 March.
A council spokesperson said: “We welcome the report from the coroner, which we will respond to in full, and our thoughts are with those close to Mr Gray following this tragic accident. We continually review all risk assessments for land which the council is responsible for, and we are identifying what further appropriate measures should be put in place to help ensure the safety of all users of the promenade.”
