After experiencing a brief ‘Indian summer’ in late September/ early October, the weather is now turning cold again and it surely won’t be long until we are reaching for those hats, scarves and gloves in preparation for the, if the past two winters are anything to go by, seemingly inevitable deluge of heavy snow and ice.

The past two winters of 2009 and 2010 are said to have been the coldest in the UK for over 100 years, so not many of us will remember many worse winters. The cold weather bought with it heavy snow and ice, which lead to a huge increase in accidents and resulted in extremely busy periods for personal injury lawyers, such as ourselves, who were inundated with new claims and advice enquiries.

But how easy is it to make a claim against a local authority for compensation following an accident as a result of snow and ice? Well, the answer is unfortunately not very easy at all and this is illustrated in the case of Rhiannon Pace V City and County of Swansea 2007. In this case the accident victim was injured in a Road Traffic Accident caused by black ice on the road. It was accepted by the Judge in this case that the accident was caused by the ice, however he ruled that the local authority had not been negligent. When considering this case, the Judge considered two questions, the first of which is: Was the local authority’s winter maintenance plan proper and reasonable?
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A hospital manager who tried to cover up medical negligence that led to the death of a 20 year old man has lost her appeal against her sacking.

The Patient, named as 20 year old John Moore-Robinson, died in 2006 after visiting the hospital in Staffordshire where staff failed to diagnose his ruptured spleen. He attended A&E after a mountain bike accident and although he underwent x-rays to check for broken ribs, nobody checked his spleen and he died hours after being discharged.

A Senior Hospital Consultant, Mr Ivan Phair, investigated and wrote a report on the incident which said that the death should have been avoided and that “There is a high probability that the level of care delivered to Mr Moore-Robinson was negligent.”
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Thousands of people are attacked by domestic dogs every year and a recent survey has revealed that 43% of school children have been bitten by a dog.

These statistics have led to new research by scientists at Lincoln University and following this, scientists have warned that the reason behind most attacks on children is because they are unable to recognize the signs of a dog becoming aggressive. Tests have revealed that children up to the age of six believe that a dog is ‘smiling’ when baring its teeth and that children only look at a dog’s mouth and ignore other signs of aggression that adults can clearly see.

The full results of the research will be revealed and discussed at the World Safety Conference taking place in London. Dr Kerstin Meints, one of the Psychologists involved in the study said: “When we probed a bit further, the children thought the dogs were happy and you could give them a hug and a kiss. That’s quite scary, obviously. The message needs to get out to parents, so they know their children can misunderstand dogs’ faces.”
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The BBC News website (source) released reports on September 15 with the story that at least 25 people, all of them tourists, sustaining injuries whilst on a boat trip from Turkey to Greece.

The accident happened at approximately 11:20am local time when the Turkish-flagged Aegean Cat catamaran boat crashed into a jetty on the Greek Island of Kos. The boat had been carrying over 200 tourists, most of them British, from the Turkish town of Didim to Kos on a day trip.

It is understood that at least 25 people sustained injuries and the majority of these suffered fairly minor cuts and bruising caused by broken glass, however at least 5 had sustained more serious injuries in the form of broken bones. The authorities have confirmed that luckily none of the injuries was life threatening. All those injured were treated at the scene and were then taken to a nearby hospital were some remain.
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The 41-year-old man and his 25-year-old son, from Stoke-on-Trent, Staffordshire, were enjoying a family holiday in Cornwall when the accident happened off the beach at Pentewan Sands, Mevagissey, Cornwall. The duo went into the sea on a motorboat and had been out to sea for around an hour when, at around 3.20pm, when they were suddenly flung from the boat into the sea. The motorboat then went over them twice whilst they were in the water and they got tangled up in its propeller.

Both men are currently said to be recovering in The Royal Cornwall Hospital in Truro with the 41-year-old in a serious but stable condition. It is understood that the 41 year old suffered severe injuries to his head and it is unsure whether, if he survives, he will have any permanent brain damage. The 25-year-old suffered serious injuries to his legs but the injuries are not believed to be life threatening.
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A horrific accident at the San Marino ‘Moto2′ Grand Prix on 5 September has lead to the tragic death of a 19-year-old Japanese driver, Shoya Tomizawa. The incident, which has rocked the motor racing world, happened when Tomizawa, who drivers for team Suter, and was only in his second Moto2 season, fell off his bike before a corner whilst travelling at full speed after he had completed 15 laps.

After falling, Tomizawa was then hit at full speed by two other bikes been driven by Italian driver Alex De Angelis and British driver Scott Redding who thankfully avoided being seriously hurt themselves.

De Angelis described how he was completely devastated by the crash which he said was “the worst ever incident in my career.
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An investigation has been launched into the death of an 8 year old boy at a swimming pool in North Yorkshire.

The tragic incident happened on 25 August at around 6.25pm when the 8 year old, recently named as Kaimen Ward, got into difficulties whilst swimming at Hambleton Leisure Centre in North Allerton. The young boy was dragged from the pool by life guards who desperately tried to resuscitate him however they were too late to save him and although he was rushed to nearby Friarage Hospital, he was pronounced dead upon arrival.

Cabinet member for health, Mr. Peter Wilkinson, confirmed that police were in the process of interviewing leisure centre staff and made the following statement:
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Incredible footage has been released on the Sky News website (Source) this week showing a car accident in Ohio, America in which the driver was seriously injured.

The accident happened on 23/08/2010 on Interstate 675 in Greene County Ohio when 19 year old driver, named as Brennan Eden, drove his Pontiac Firebird car at over 100mph causing him to lose control, hit the central reservation and then fly into a concrete pillar on an interstate bridge.
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On 19th August 2010, the BBC News web site (Source) featured a story about how a 34 year old man saved his young daughter, 3, from serious injuries when she was attacked by an Asian Black Bear whilst visiting a Zoo in western Germany.

The incident occurred on 18/08/10 when the Dutch man, his wife and two children were visiting the Eifel zoo in Luenebach, western Germany. It is understood that the 3 year old girl climbed the 1 meter high fence whilst her parents were not watching and fell into the bear enclosure. The girl was then mauled and hit round the head by the bear before her father jumped over the fence to save his daughter. The 34 year old man who has not yet been named managed to save himself and his daughter but not before he was also attacked by the bear and receiving injuries to his leg.

The police and ambulance were called quickly to the scene by onlookers and both victims were taken to a hospital in nearby Trier by helicopter where they both remain. A police spokeswoman said that they were both ‘extremely lucky’ to survive an attack by the bear as this particular breed of bear are well known for their strength and regularly attack and kill livestock and humans in their natural habitat.
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Reports emerged in the UK and world media on Monday 16th of August of a horrific road accident in Nigeria, in which at least 40 people are believed to have been killed.

The tragic accident happened on the evening of Sunday 15th August on a busy motorway ‘expressway’ between the cities of Lagos and Ibadan. It is understood that a lorry, which was loaded with sugar, crashed into dozens of vehicles waiting at a police checkpoint, and exploded into flames after its brakes failed to operate when driving down a slope.

The official number of people dead or injured as a result of the accident is yet to be confirmed, however the estimate has risen from 20 to at least 40 in the last few days, and it is understood that at least 20 vehicles were involved including 2 minibuses which were able to carry 18 people each. The sugar company who owned the vehicle causing the accident has also confirmed that the two employees in the vehicle have died. It has been reported that many of the bodies were burnt beyond recognition and identifying the bodies is likely to be a lengthy process which will only prolong the agony of the victims’ families.
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