OAP badly hurt in loose grate fall
Keith Rogers on Westgate in Ripon with the loose grate that led to his wife Jeans nasty fall. (1209112AM1)
A Ripon pensioner is calling for loose grates on the pavements of the city to be fixed after his wife suffered nasty injuries in a fall.
Keith Rogers, 72, of Edens Way, was walking along Westgate with his wife, Jean, when the accident involving an 18in metal covering over a draining channel happened across the road from the Black Swan pub.
He said: “She came crashing down and her face hit my thigh –she then rolled over and bashed the side of her leg which left her with a lot of pain.”
Mr Rogers said the metal coverings are usually secured with a bolt but in this case the bolt had come out.
“When you step on one end, the other end comes up,” he said, indicating his wife had tripped in the exposed channel.
Mrs Rogers immediately went to the outpatients’ unit at Ripon hospital for treatment and said she has was left requiring an X-ray to investigate a clicking noise which has developed in her shoulder after the fall.
“It really shook me up because I’m 70 – my leg was so painful, and my face,” she said.
“It’s such a shock to your system at our age.”
North Yorkshire County Council is responsible for the maintenance of the city’s pavements but Mr Rogers said the defective grate remained in place days after he reported it to the local authority.
He said: “I don’t know why they don’t take it seriously –it’s easy for someone to fall right under a car.”
A spokesman for the council said: “North Yorkshire County Council is aware of this issue and is undertaking an inspection of the site to ensure that the appropriate action is taken.”
Email to a friend
Print this page
Looking for...
Featured advertisers
Jobs
Search for a job
Motors
Search for a car
Property
Search for a house
Weather for Ripon
Wednesday 22 May 2013
Today
Sunny spells
Temperature: 4 C to 16 C
Wind Speed: 22 mph
Wind direction: North west
Tomorrow
Light showers
Temperature: 6 C to 11 C
Wind Speed: 22 mph
Wind direction: North west
