Mum breaks nose falling onto pavement as developers say 'it's not a hazard'
A mother fell and broke her nose after tripping on a "bump in the pavement" - and still suffers flashbacks of the ordeal.
Sharon Clarke, 46, described the scene as a "bloodbath" after she tumbled on pavement near her home in Longbridge, Birmingham.
But the company which owns the land, property developers St Mowden, says there were "no obvious hazards" and has "declared the site safe".
Speaking to Birmingham Live today, mum-of-two Sharon said: "I was walking one minute - bag of shopping in hand - the next minute, I was flat out.
"I didn't even get chance to put my hands out, my face took the full force of the fall. It looked like a bloodbath basically."
Missing radioactive capsule found after huge search - and it's the size of a pea
Sharon Clarke recalled how she tripped and fell face-first into the pavement (BPM Media)Sharon was off work for a week - losing out on £250 pay - after the accident. Her nose has now lost all feeling but private surgery to to remove the "permanent bump" would cost Sharon £5,000.
As a result of the fall, Sharon felt unable to take her son out for his ninth birthday plans.
She had been en-route to pick up her two children from school when she says she suddenly fell to the ground.
A manager of a shop nearby, who was fortunately a first aider, had to pick Sharon up "off the floor".
"My little boy was mortified, absolutely heartbroken when he saw me," the mum continued, recalling the distressing episode.
The mum says there were hazardous dips left in the pavement (BPM Media)
Sharon likened the scene after the accident to a 'bloodbath' (BPM Media)"It sounds silly but I still get flashbacks of the incident because I went down so hard, and so fast. The pain... I don't know how I didn't pass out.
"I can walk down the street and won't know if my nose is pouring, I still can't feel it.
"I've got permanent nerve damage by the looks of it. But because it didn't damage the middle part of the nose enough, it's not classed as needing surgery on the NHS - so I'd have to pay for it as it's now classed as cosmetic.
"My only priority if I had £5,000 would be to make sure my children had their first holiday that they've never had."
Sharon, who has recently started a job taking calls for NHS 111, claims her probation was set back due to the sick leave she had to take.
Boy, 3, dies after being left in sweltering car in 34C heat 'throughout the day'
"I had to have that time off sick through no fault of my own," she added.
The mother, of Birmingham, said she still has flashbacks after her face took the brunt of the fall (BPM Media)
Sharon shared a photograph of the pavement near her home (BPM Media)"I had to put my job at risk because I was not well enough to sit there and look after other people's health."
St Mowden said a full investigation was launched, with "no obvious hazards" as they "declared the site safe". There are no plans to alter the site as the variance of slabs was described by the insurance company as between 2mm - 4mm. Sharon's claim has been denied.
A spokesperson for St. Modwen said: "We take issues around safety on our sites very seriously and following the report of the accident at Longbridge town centre, a full investigation was launched.
“During this process, the site was inspected by internal and external health and safety teams, both of whom saw no obvious hazards and declared the site to be safe.
“Longbridge town centre is monitored by the security teams on a daily basis to ensure any safety issues are addressed immediately and we reject the suggestion that concerns were ignored.”
Read more similar news:
Comments:
comments powered by Disqus
