Halstead: Postman's lucky escape

[TrueBlueTerrier]

http://www.halsteadgazette.co.uk/news/4 ... ky_escape/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

A postman, who was thrown into the air when he was in collision with a car, is thankful he still had his cycle helmet on.

Halstead resident David Lilley, who is now on crutches, was not on his bike when the collision took place during his round in Tilbury Road, Great Yeldham.

But he had kept his helmet on - a move which he said saved him from serious head injuries.

The 45-year-old said: “My head hit the windscreen with some force and I was thrown up in the air.

“I went round two to three times like a somersault and landed in a ditch running alongside.

“I got out of the ditch straight away and I was hopping around the road.

“I was shaken up after the accident and I didn’t realise my leg was broken at the time.”

Donna Veasey, police spokeswoman, said: ““We’re investigating the circumstances surrounding the collision.

"There have been no arrests or charges.”

Mr Lilley, who has been a postman for five years, was taken to Colchester General Hospital and released the same day - May 26.

His leg was put in a full length plaster cast, which was taken off this week.

The resident of Acorn Avenue said: “The helmet certainly prevented serious head injuries because you can see what my head did to the windscreen."

[POSTMAN]

Well well well,food for thought for the anti helmet brigade.

[brothermagrew]

Well well well,food for thought for the anti helmet brigade.

Brother POSTMAN I totally agree with your sentiments what with this and the before item of the Guernsey postie being hit by another vehicle. Thought indeed for those who continually choose not to wear their cycle helmets.

[johnsouthwales]

you can see what my head did to the windscreen it was the helmet that caused the dent in the glass not his head. then again, he could have that dent in his head if he wasn't wearing a helmet.

must have been quite an impact for all that to happen. bike accidents make me shiver.. well hurt to...

when insurance cover bike injuries,falling off a bike usually sustains injuries such as sprained wrist. is a head inury covered? as it is not compulsary to wear a helmet or is it excluded from cover? are there any exclusions on policy? there should be as there would be no reason to recommend wearing a helmet as advisory in case they'd have to pay out which is usually the case in insurance as they're more cocerned in the money they'd have to pay out rather than the welfare and safety of the rider

[smokerjim]

JOhn, as far as I am aware, a helmet is part of your PPE, and just as RM is compelled to provide it we as opgs are compelled to use it....no ifs, no buts - so if we were involved in an accident on a bike without using the helmet ( even if head injuries are not sustained ) I imagine that the insurance company might wriggle out of paying.

[johnsouthwales]

that's the grey area whether it is mandatory or advisory. insurance companies dictate things over the years. most of the time when ask management for protection, a stern look would be given and accused of being a troublemaker.

do insurance companies determine how we work and live, or are they doing it out of kindness?...

knee protectors could become advisory in case someone falls off and damages a pateela, causing severe rupture to the cartilage.. employers usually say war them in case you hurt yourself, when probably at the same time bricking it in case they get hit with a permanent injury claim.
elbow protectors the same.. wearing knee pads and elbow protectors on a bike is more likely to hinder natural movement and more likely to cause an accident rather than protect from injury.. can't win.

helmet are best. they stop things being flicked up form the road injuring. doesn't stop anything flicked onto the face or protect eyes. being hit by a bee can cause an accident. cyclist riding at 15mph, bee swarming around at 10mph, chances of it happening are low but does happen. i used to think what are the chanvces of being hit by a stone while driving a car? most either get flicked around by a car in front and just bounce underneath. lorries flick up all sorts, was well peeved when a stone cracked my windscreen. got away with mot for ages cos the crack was in the C zone lol.
lorry flicking up stones and hitting cyclists? billion to one.. maybe if i was 2 seconds earlier or later i would have missed the stone altogether. it's down to chance.

[smokerjim]

Having said that John, I was riding into work after lunch years ago and a diifferent job ( on an RG125 Gamma ), and it was on an industrial estate by the North Circular. I was riding uo the road parralell to the Nth Circ, against the direction of traffic and I was just mooching along and slowing for the turn I had to take. As I'm doing this, a class two tipper, was doing 50 ( from Hanger Lane to the Harrow Road that's the max speed ), and as it got close, I saw this huge f*ck off stone come looping up fromm it's rear wheels, fly over the 9 foot high fence straight towards me ( I can see it clearly, in slow motion....just a shame I was transfixed by it ), I couldn't do more than think "Oh f*ck....this is going to hurt!" and it hit me.....square on the shoulder - thankfully, I was wearing my armoured jacket ( as always ), and it hit the shoulder armour, I managed to keep control, but by Christ it bloody hurt!!!

If I'd been on a bicycle, and it hit me in the mooey?....well, Central Middx Hospital is only round the corner ( shame their A&E, facilities, and generally everything, except for some of their staff is so sh*t! )

[johnsouthwales]

crikey... i know what you mean by being transfixed. it's a bit like suspended animation, slow motion. some weird fascination of an object.
lucky for your jacket then. don't like being hit by anything.. i was chatting to someone a while back, things used to do..go for a bike ride 40 miles away, nice summer's day, jeans, boots, t-shirt, gloves and helmet. never used to worry about things hitting me.. think the health and safety issues made me more nervy than anything else and put me off lol. that was around the time seatbelts law came in.. could swear an accident was going to happen the more they talked about it.
i've been on nrth circular a few times, two lanes. bit like a dual carriageway. lol, another weird thins happened was when i was driving, driving along the m53 returning from liverpool, evening, bit windy. i thought to myself, am i seeing things? a fence panel blowing about. must have blown off someone's car roof from B+Q.. seen allsorts on motorways. usually here nothing happens.. things to spot next to the inside lane.. tyres is usually the norm. noticed filing cabinet once wtf

[johnsouthwales]

tipper trucks always spill their krap somewhere by overloading. and things like that could easily trigger a chain of events. seems strange to say but all you could do was brace yourself if that makes any sense.