Car crash leads to pensioner’s death

Nov 2 2007 by Liam Murphy, Liverpool Daily Post

A 91-YEAR-OLD man died more than two weeks after a car crash which broke his ribs.

Robert Garrett, from Beverley Drive, in Gayton, Wirral, was being driven by his nephew when another car turned right across their path.

Following the crash on Barnston Road, near the junction to Milner Road, Mr Garrett was taken to A&E at Arrowe Park but despite a chest X-ray, no sign of his broken ribs was detected.

Yesterday an inquest at Wallasey town hall heard that Mr Garrett had been discharged with painkillers but the pain continued to grow worse and eventually he was re-admitted to hospital.

He died on March 19, 2007, just over two weeks after the crash took place on March 3.

The coroner’s court was told the cause of death was pneumonia caused by chest injuries and rib fractures.

The inquest was told by A&E consultant Mr Dele Ohioenoya that the poor quality of the X-ray had made it difficult to spot the fractures, but unless Mr Garrett had been in more pain the treatment would not have been any different.

He said he had been primarily checking for a fracture of the breast bone. But coroner Chris- topher Johnson, recording a narrative verdict, said it appeared to be “a rather hit-or-miss exercise”.

Mr Johnson said: “It’s clear that the events which led to Mr Garrett’s death were those of March 3 when he was in a car that was struck by another car.”