Nelson motorcyclist is killed: police appeal

Police are appealing for witnesses to contact them to establish the cause of the crash on one of Britain’s most dangerous roads.

The rider - not yet named - was in collision with a Ford Transit truck and his motorcycle then hit a wall, and he was thrown over it into a muddy section of a field, 20 yards from the point of the crash.

An air ambulance attended and landed on an adjacent field, and Nelson fire crews were called in to help lift the injured man over the wall and get him into the helicopter.

A police spokesman said: “The 47-year-old motorcyclist, who is from Nelson, was airlifted to the Royal Preston Hospital where he sadly died as a result of his injuries.”

The accident happened around 4-35 p.m. on Monday on a long, straight stretch of road between Blacko Bar and the Moorcock Inn, near Blacko Tower.

Watch Manager Tom Simpson, of Nelson Fire Station, said: “We were called in to help lift the victim out of the field over the wall. The paramedics had already been treating him for quite a while. I would say he was 20 yards into a muddy banking.

“He had bad leg injuries - two broken legs - but did appear fully conscious. The Transit driver was not injured in the incident.”

Police say the motorcyclist also had a head injury. They are appealing for witnesses to come forward. They say the Ford Transit was travelling towards Gisburn and was in collision with the motorcycle travelling in the opposite direction.

The road was closed for more than three hours to allow an investigation to take place.

Sgt Steve Wignall from the Force Road Policing Unit said: “I would appeal to anybody that witnessed the collision to come forward and contact Lancashire Police on 101.”

People with information can also contact the independent charity Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111 or online at Crimestoppers-uk.org

No personal details are taken, information is not traced or recorded and you will not go to court.

The A682 between Nelson and Long Preston is a road which has been identified as highly dangerous in the past - particularly for bikers. In 2007, it was named the worst in the country by the Road Safety Foundation. It has also been named in the world’s top 10 dangerous roads in 2010.