Pensioner dozed off at wheel and two people died

A PENSIONER caused the death of two people by dozing off at the wheel on his way back to Tyneside from a trip to the Lake District.

- ROB KENNEDY

Keen walker and photographer Andrew Nicoll, 82 at the time and 84 now, was travelling home to Whitley Bay when tragedy struck on the A69.

Newcastle Crown Court heard a police investigation into the collision found it is likely he either fell asleep or into a micro sleep for a few seconds.

His Mazda drifted across into oncoming traffic and collided head on with a Skoda Fabia, killing Nicoll's 81-year friend and passenger, Keith Aiston and 68-year-old Catherine Elford, a passenger in the Skoda.

Now Nicoll, of Holywell Avenue, Whitley Bay, has been given a suspended prison sentence. It was around 5.45pm on November 30, 2023 that the collision occurred on an unlit single carriageway section of the A69, between Haydon Bridge and Hexham.

Nicoll was driving a Mazda 3 with his friend, Mr Aiston, in the front passenger seat, as they travelled back from the Lake District.

The court heard the pensioners had been walking that day before setting off from Borrowdale to drive home.

He had not stopped as he did not feel the need and said he had no recollection of anything since being in the car park in the Lake District.

As Nicoll travelled east of Haydon Bridge, his car went into the west bound lane and collided head-on with the Skoda, driven by Mr Elford, with his wife in the car, as they travelled home towards Haltwhistle.