A woman died when her car collided head-on with an ambulance on the A66, an inquest heard.
Lauren McFarland, 30, an accomplished horse rider, competitive trail runner and keen traveller, was travelling from her home in Keswick to Penrith when the incident happened just before 8.45am on Thursday January 11 2024.
As Lauren headed east, in a red Fiat Punto, dash cam footage from another vehicle captured her positioning the vehicle close to the centre line of the carriageway.
On a sweeping left hand bend two miles east of Keswick, the Punto initially turned away from the centre line before moving back towards it.
Cockermouth Coroners’ Court heard the Punto then started to rotate clockwise. It moved into the opposite carriageway and collided head-on with a westbound ambulance, whose driver, Abigail Routledge, was left with no time to react.
Paramedic Abigail was returning to Keswick with a colleague after a night shift. There were no patients in the ambulance at the time and its blue lights were not activated.
Despite being left shocked, Abigail and her colleague rushed to help Lauren and with the help of bystanders they removed her from the badly damaged Punto and began giving CPR.
A doctor took over and another crew of paramedics also attended. However, Lauren had suffered multiple traumatic injuries, and was pronounced dead at the scene.
A friend of Lauren’s who was also driving to work, at Penrith Leisure Centre, came upon the crash site.
Freya Graham recalled seeing smoke, a crashed ambulance and stopped to try and help. She saw the badly damaged red Punto, distinctive trainers she recognised as Lauren’s and was left in shock.
In a statement she said: “We were good friends. She was the nicest girl going. She never had a bad word to say about anyone.”
A police collision investigator who examined the Punto found a damaged rear offside wheel rim, which was causing air to escape from the tyre.
“What we don’t know is whether or not this contributed to the collision and her loss of control of the car,” concluded Margaret Taylor, a Cumbria coroner. “It is possible the air was lost upon impact. But it is a possibility that it may have affected her ability to control the car.”
The police investigator said it was also possible that Lauren may have been distracted by something inside or outside her vehicle. There was no evidence of phone use at the time, the inquest heard.
Ms Taylor concluded that Lauren died as a result of a road traffic collision.
Of the ambulance driver, Ms Taylor said: “We know from the investigation report that she had no opportunity to avoid the collision, and even if she had attempted to react to the appearance of Lauren’s car, she would not have been able to brake or steer her vehicle in a manner that would have avoided that collision.”
A passionate horse rider from a very young age, Lauren had competed nationally at equestrian events. She was also a keen runner and member of Keswick AC.
A sports therapy graduate, she was employed within the national health service before latterly switching career and starting work for Penrith-based Kandoo Adventures.
It was through this work, shortly before her death, that Lauren made a dream journey to Everest Base Camp as part of a Himalayan expedition. She also raised money for a charity during this trip.
In a tribute issued after her death, Lauren’s family said: “She was a beautiful, confident and caring person who loved the outdoors and adventure.”
