A MAN who died when the car he was travelling in hit a central reservation and flipped onto its roof has been named.
Michael Parnell was one of three men in the vehicle on a busy section of the A1 when the red Ford 4x4 he was travelling in left the southbound carriageway, flipped over and landed on its roof on the opposite carriageway. Mr Parnell, of Derby Road, Stanley, County Durham is not believed to have been the driver of the car. The two other people in the car with him, a 44-year-old man and 49-year-old man, were released from hospital yesterday with only minor injuries.
Mr Parnell, 46, lost his life when the crash occurred on Wednesday just before 2pm on the A1 in Northumberland close to the Stannington turn off, near Cramlington.
The crash was one of a number of serious incidents on the region’s roads in which two other people also lost their lives.
Philip Grey lost his life when he walked in front of a car shortly after getting off a bus. The 53-year-old, also from the Stanley area, was pronounced dead at the scene of the accident in East Stanley on Wednesday night. Mr Grey was hit by on the A693 at the junction of Beamish Rise and Hill-Top, at around 8.15pm.
Road traffic units closed the road down for two hours as they carried out investigations.
A third tragic fatality occurred on the region’s roads when a 22-year-old driver of a silver Peugeot crashed into a lamppost in South Tyneside.
The crash happened at around 5am yesterday in Ashley Villas, next to Somerset Terrace in East Boldon. The driver was pronounced dead at the scene.
Officers trying to determine the cause of the crash say that no other vehicle was involved.
But they would like to hear from anyone who witnessed the accident or saw the car shortly before. They particularly want to hear from a lorry driver who stopped at the scene.
In Newcastle, the Central Motorway northbound was closed down for around four hours after a motorcyclist suffered serious injuries. The rider lost control of his machine shortly after 11.15am yesterday at the underpass near to the Jesmond turn-off. The rider suffered serious injuries and was taken to hospital. Investigators re-opened the road shortly after 3pm.
Yesterday also saw three people taken to hospital and later discharged without any serious injuries after the Ford Focus they were travelling in collided with a double-decker bus near to St James’ Park. The crash happened at 11.45am yesterday. Barrack Road near to its junction with the Black Bull was temporarily closed down to allow investigation.
Anyone who can assist with information on any of the collisions should call Durham police on 0345 606 0365 or Northumbria police on 0345 604 3043.
