THE driver of a car which "ploughed" into two cyclists killing a woman and badly injuring her husband must have fallen asleep at the wheel, an inquest was told.

The hearing into the death of Dorothy Brown, 47, of Taylor Street, Barnoldswick, heard evidence that 71-year-old motorist Frank Walmsley could have been suffering from a heart irregularity.

After the accident on the A59, near West Marton, on June 27, Mr Walmsley, of High Bank, Threshfield, voluntarily surrendered his driving licence.

In a later court case he pleaded guilty to driving without due care and attention and was fined £150 and ordered to pay £45 in costs. He was also banned from driving for a year and told he would have to take a driving test if he wanted to get his licence back.

At the inquest in Burnley this week, Mrs Brown's husband, Alan, who runs Brown Bros Esso garage in Barnoldswick, said he was with his wife on a bike ride along the A59. They were wearing green tops and dark trousers but no headwear. Mr Brown said he remembered nothing of the accident.

Doris Walmsley said she was in the front passenger seat of the Rover being driven by her husband. She had slept for most of the journey and was awakened by a sudden jolt. The windscreen was smashed, there was a second bump and she saw something green going across the windscreen.

Witnesses Malcolm Carter, of Leeds, and Alister Carstairs, of Thirsk said the Rover was being driven normally, if slightly slowly, but suddenly veered to the left and ploughed into the cyclists.

PC Peter John Cockle said Mr Walmsley told him at the scene: "I must have fallen asleep temporarily." In a later statement he said he could remember nothing of the journey home. "I think the shock has blacked it out," he said.

East Lancashire Coroner David Smith read a statement from Mr Walmsley's GP, Dr Ian Kinnish, who said he could find no medical reason for why he couldn't recall the journey or why he should black out. Mr Smith also referred to a letter sent to Mr Walmsley from cardiologist Dr Paul Silverton, of Airedale General Hospital, which said the unexplained absence could be due to cardiac irregularity.

Recording a verdict of accidental death, Mr Smith said it was an "awful tragedy".

Converted for the new archive on 30 June 2000. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.