PEOPLE “will die” after falling on potholed pavements, a concerned husband has said after his wife fell and was left with a fractured eye socket.
Sue Lucas also fractured her arm after falling in Fourth Avenue, Frinton, on Saturday afternoon.
The Holmbrook Way resident was rushed to Colchester Hospital for emergency treatment and may need to undergo surgery because of the damage.
Sue thanked the NHS staff who helped her and passersby who stopped to help after the fall.
“Ambulance staff gave me morphine to lessen my discomfort and to counteract the effect of sudden movement of the ambulance due to potholes on the route to the hospital,” she said.
Her husband, Phil, said: “Frinton is a place with a large number of elderly people who have to use these defective paths.
“All it will take is someone frail falling awkwardly and they will die as a result. When is Essex Highways going to realise the danger they are putting us all in.”
Frinton councillor Richard Everett is campaigning to get the town’s paths fixed after a string of incidents that have left people in hospital.
He said: “Essex Highways needs to fix our paths before anyone else gets seriously injured – to leave the footways as they are means they are culpable.
“While some of the worst pavement defects have been fixed, there remains a problem with many more paving slabs that are potentially lethal.”
Mr Everett says he will continue campaigning and has urged Essex Highways to spend money on fixing dangerous footpaths in the town.
What does Essex Highways say?
Essex Highways arranged for an urgent inspection to be carried out after learning of the incident.
A spokesman said: “We are very sorry to hear about this person’s fall and wish them a speedy recovery.
“After being made aware of the incident, an urgent inspection was carried out today to identify any defects that meet our criteria for repair. We will continue to inspect the footway at regular intervals.”
He added all defects reported to the authority are assessed by an inspector and urged members of the public to report issues online at essexhighways.org/tell-us.
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