August 1, 2016 10.17 am This story is over 98 months old

A18 to close for inspections after five family members killed in tragic crash

A crash on the A18 near Grimsby in which five family members were killed has led to a series of inspections to assess the safety of the road. North East Lincolnshire Council (NELC) and its partner Engie will close the A18 following an inquest into the fatal collision. Aecom will carry out a series of inspections of…

A crash on the A18 near Grimsby in which five family members were killed has led to a series of inspections to assess the safety of the road.

North East Lincolnshire Council (NELC) and its partner Engie will close the A18 following an inquest into the fatal collision.

Aecom will carry out a series of inspections of the A18 under full road closures for one week from Monday, August 8 between 7.30am and 6pm.

During each closure the road will be closed to all vehicles except those requiring access to local businesses and homes.

Angela, 49, and David Cockburn, 48, their two daughters Carley Ann, 21, and Bethany, 18 and one-year-old granddaughter Lacie from County Durham died when the car they were in hit an oncoming lorry.

Following an inquest in March, HM Coroner Paul Kelly instructed the council and Engie to jointly commission an independent review of the safety of the A18 between the junction with the A46 Laceby roundabout and the Highway Authority boundary to the south.

NELC and Engie have engaged multi-disciplinary consultancy Aecom Ltd to carry out the safety review.

 

Any motorists who are required to drive through the area are asked to drive slowly and carefully when in the closure area as surveyors will be working on the road.

The firm has been given a brief in line with the coroner’s instructions and will report within six months on the feasibility of bringing the A18, from the A46 Laceby roundabout to the borough’s southern boundary, to the standard of a modern A road.

Tony Maione, Assistant Director Law at NELC, said: “Ultimately, the purpose of this work is to prevent such a tragedy occurring again on this stretch of the A18.”

Almost 3,000 people have supported a tribute page set up on Facebook in the wake of the tragic crash.