Windermere Drive crash: girl, 5, too scared to use crossing

Debbie Heywood and her two children saw the woman knocked down at the zebra crossing in Windermere Drive, Warndon near Sainsbury's Blackpole in Worcester last month.

FLASHBACK: The cordon in the immediate aftermath of the crash at Windermere Drive in Warndon near Sainsbury's Blackpole, showing the police cordon (Image: James Connell/Newsquest)

The woman in her 40s was knocked down on Wednesday, February 7 and rushed to the Queen Elizabeth Hospital in Birmingham after suffering life-threatening injuries.

She is now said to be in a stable condition but the incident has also had a wider impact - including on the family who witnessed it who have joined calls for a pelican crossing.

The incident happened at around 5.20pm when a beige Nissan Figaro travelling from Blackpole towards Sainsbury's collided with a woman crossing the road at the zebra crossing. Her dog was also hurt in the incident.

CLOSED: A police van near the Blackpole end of Windemere Drive stops cars going up the road after the incident (Image: James Connell/Newsquest)

Meanwhile, a petition calling for a button-operated pelican crossing is due to be handed in to Worcestershire County Council Highways bosses at County Hall today (Thursday).

The accounts of residents recorded within the petition, some of whom have experienced near misses themselves, have been described as 'chilling' by the Labour councillors who organised the petition.

Warndon's Labour councillor, Jill Desayrah, had been calling for a pelican crossing for a year before the incident, arguing that many drivers did not stop at the existing Sainsbury's crossing.

Now Labour candidate for Warndon, Edward Kimberley, and Cllr Desayrah, have met with residents to discuss their concerns, including the mum who witnessed the incident who has joined the chorus of calls for a crossing.

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Mrs Heywood said: "Me and my children witnessed the aftermath of the collision. We saw the lady being looked after on the floor before the ambulances arrived and the air ambulance turn up.

"My youngest daughter has refused to use any zebra crossing since witnessing the incident and we now have to find alternative routes or use traffic lights where she feels safer."

Cllr Desayrah said: "This girl's experience shows the lasting impact of the incident - and not just on the lady who was hurt."

Mr Kimberley said: "We were taking photos near the crossing when Debbie happened to be walking past. Like so many local people, she has her own stories to tell about near misses; situations which all too easily could have ended in a fatality.

"Everyone we speak to in the area has something to say about that crossing, with many telling us that they refuse to risk using it.

"A five year old child should not have to live in fear of walking our streets. I know that hundreds of local people feel the same, thanks to all the signatures and testimonies we gathered for our petition. I hope the county council finds them as persuasive and as moving as I do.

On Windermere Drive, near the Sainsbury's mini-roundabout, there have been three injury collisions since 2019 - two slight injury collisions and one serious injury collision - which does not include the recent collision.

West Mercia Police were approached for an update on the case.