Tragic death of distracted runner on level crossing
Network Rail has been ordered to make changes to prevent further deaths
Hello and welcome to The Southport Lead.
Regular readers will have seen that on Wednesday’s edition brought the news that the old Pontins site is being used as a training ground for police dogs. As sure as night follows day, the story was picked up by the Liverpool Echo a day later, whose report said:
“Earlier this week, the ECHO was made aware of reports of police officers and police dogs seen navigating their way around the Pontins Southport site, with suggestions the area was being used for training exercises”
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Almost exactly a year ago, we reported on Network Rail’s failure to keep its promise to improve safety at a level crossing in Southport where two people have died. Today’s edition looks at a crossing in Formby, where the company has been told to make changes after another tragic death.
While one might assume deaths on train lines are acts of suicide, Sam Dudley’s death was instead a tragic accident and one which raises concerns about people’s awareness when wearing headphones.
Southport briefing
🏥 A decision on plans for the future location of Southport and Ormskirk A&E services will be presented at a public meeting next month. The joint committee made up of the integrated care boards (ICB) of NHS Cheshire and Merseyside and NHS Lancashire and South Cumbria are meeting on Friday, 13 March to make a final decision on where A&E services should be located in Southport, Formby and West Lancashire. The meeting will take place from 10am Ormskirk Civic Hall and follows a consultation which proposed either moving the Children’s A&E Department to Southport or the Adults’ to Ormskirk.
📢 Southport MP Patrick Hurley has repeated calls for the creation of a National Pier Service or ‘National Piers Trust’. Hurley believes the creation of a dedicated body which would manage, preserve and regenerate piers would allow benefits such as economies of scale. By centralising key functions such as procurement and maintenance through bulk purchasing and shared contracts as well as providing better access to specialist expertise and pooling insurance risks. He also argues it could lead to further improvements in terms of branding, marketing and events. Writing in Politics Home, the MPs said: “This Labour government’s core mission is a decade of renewal, and Britain’s iconic piers are a national symbol of our identity – after 14 years of Tory mismanagement, they should be treated as such. Coastal towns have long been left behind through the austerity of consecutive Conservative governments, but Labour is now working to tackle regional inequality. To combine the history and aesthetic of piers with a modern regeneration of coastal economies, let’s invest in rebuilding and refurbishing these iconic British monuments.”
🏗️ A growing Southport firm has officially submitted plans to develop new headquarters on vacant land at Southport Business Park. The EFT Group, which specialises in life safety, security and construction services, wants to create new headquarters at the Wight Moss Way site as the company enjoys rapid growth. The firm, which employs a large local workforce and supports school-based apprenticeship schemes, has been working with Sefton Council to develop the site after effectively being given the land to redevelop it. The Southport Lead has previously reported how poor ground conditions and the loss of EU funding has made the park unattractive to developers. Jordan Duggan, Co-Director of EFT Group, said: “As a local family company, we are proud of our roots in Southport. This development reflects our commitment to the area and our belief in its future, with this investment EFT Group is firmly bedding our roots into Southport for the next 50 years, creating a lasting base for our business, our employees and the next generation of workers across Sefton. We look forward to continuing to work with stakeholders, the local authority and the community as this exciting project progresses.”
Coroner’s warning after death of runner of train tracks
By Jamie Lopez
Network Rail has been ordered to improve its signage after a runner was struck by a train and died.
Sam Dudley suffered fatal injuries when he was hit by the train on a level crossing in Formby last August. An inquest into his death took place last week and heard that the volume of music on his headphones meant he did not hear the train coming.
While it was concluded by Anita Bhardwaj, Senior Coroner for Sefton, St. Helens and Knowsley, that the crossing was “safe, compliant, and operating as designed”, she also said that more signage is needed closer to the tracks given that people are increasingly wearing headphones and less aware of their surroundings.
