A gardener was killed when a tree collapsed on his caravan during Storm Goretti, an inquest has heard. James Southey died when 90mph winds hit Cornwall, forcing a nearby tree to be uprooted and fall onto his home.
The storm in January caused widespread damage across Cornwall, with about 50,000 homes without power. Major highways and rural routes were also blocked by thousands of fallen trees.
Neighbours heard the tree come down during the storm but were unable to reach the father-of-two, who was trapped inside the caravan at a farm in Mawgan, Helston, on the evening of January 8. They contacted emergency services, who went to the scene but could not rescue him due to the storm. The next day, they recovered his body.
A post-mortem examination later found Mr Southey died from suffocation, Cornwall Coroner’s Court was told. Farmer Martin Williams, who was Mr Southey’s landlord, said the storm started at about 6.30pm and caused a power cut in his house.
In a statement read to the court, he said: "I looked out of the window and could still see the light from James' log burner coming from the caravan. My wife Suzanne was looking around the house for candles so that we were not in darkness and that’s when we heard a noise that sounded like thunder. It was a loud rumbling noise. Suzanne went upstairs and she told me she had looked outside and could not see James’ log burner anymore or the outline of the tree, so she thought the tree had come down."
Mr Williams said he went to the caravan but could not get to the front door due to the fallen tree. He went on: "All I could see was the tree. I was shouting for James but could not hear any reply. I smashed the bedroom window which cut my finger and was bleeding quite badly. I climbed in and continued shouting for James. I couldn’t see him in there, so I tried to get to the left-hand side of the caravan, but it was completely crushed and I couldn’t get anywhere."
Mrs Williams called 999, but responders were unable to reach Mr Southey, 50, due to the continuing storm, as well as gas canisters and powerlines in the vicinity. Neighbour Brett Jolliffe joined Mr Williams in trying to rescue the self-employed gardener, but neither could reach him.
The next day, emergency services returned to the farm. Tree surgeon Robert Blythman was able to cut away parts of the tree to allow access to the caravan. Mr Blythman said the tree was in a healthy condition with a full canopy. He said: "These trees are not native to the area and do generally have a shallow root base. It was located at the bottom of fields and there was lots of water run off towards it. The ground was sodden due to the weather. There was a large treehouse on the side of the tree, but I do not think this had any bearing on the tree uprooting."
Devon and Cornwall Police investigated Mr Southey’s death but did not find any third-party involvement. Assistant Cornwall Coroner Emma Hillson recorded a conclusion of accidental death. She said: "The Health and Safety Executive and Cornwall Council confirmed that there were no further investigations into his death in these circumstances of him being a private rental tenant on a non-working farm. It is not believed there is any third-party involvement or culpability in relation to James’ death. On the evidence, I find it is most likely than not that James died as a result of the position of the tree when it fell."
