Pensioner injured as scooter topples into pothole

An 88-year-old woman sustained a "dangerous, horrible wound" and became trapped under her mobility scooter after it toppled into a pothole.

Pat Lowe had moved up onto a muddy verge to allow a car to pass her on Church Walk in Viney Hill, Gloucestershire, but could not avoid a large water-filled pothole as she returned to the road.

She tried to attract the attention of neighbours but eventually managed to free herself after 10 minutes and get the scooter back upright.

Joe Harris, cabinet member for highways at Gloucestershire County Council, said the incident was reported on 16 March and an inspector would be sent to the road to carry out an audit and "ensure any repairs needed are made".

Lowe said she got out from under her scooter "with great difficulty" and was "really struggling and shouting".

"There are houses nearby but they were watching the Welsh [Six Nations] rugby no doubt," she said.

"It was about 10 minutes before I was able to get onto my feet and I was very badly hurt."

Lowe's son, who is a consultant at Musgrove Park Hospital in Taunton, saw a photograph of her injured elbow, and described it as a "dangerous, horrible wound", she said.

Lowe spent five hours in A&E at Gloucestershire Royal Hospital after the incident.

"I was in such agony, and shock; shock at not being able to do anything," she said.

"There are potholes the length of the road. I cannot negotiate my scooter between the potholes without going into a little one here and there, and there are huge ones as well," she added.

Harris said he was sorry to hear about Lowe's incident, adding that a highways manager would be making contact with her to make sure her "concerns are heard and addressed".

"Our highways teams are working flat out and are continuing to deal with the impact of the winter weather, so please bear with us while we fix the most urgent cases," Harris said.

"We're committed to improving the quality of roads in the Forest of Dean and across the county."

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