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Villagers fear death on bend after latest crash

Sarah-May BuccieriEast Keal
Graham Pearson An overturned cement lorry has crashed into a brick wall and fence. Police officers are stopping traffic in the road next to it. The lorry is white with black tyres and red and yellow "highway maintenance" markings on the back. A house and trees can be seen to either side of the road.Graham Pearson
The crash at the bend in May is the second to involve a cement mixer

People living near a tight bend fear someone could be killed if action is not taken after the latest crash there.

A cement lorry overturned at Hall Corner on the A16 in East Keal, near Spilsby, on 22 May and hit the garden wall of a home.

Graham Pearson, 62, who owns the house, said regular incidents marked a "systemic problem" and called for a mandatory 20mph speed limit.

Lincolnshire County Council said it acknowledged local concerns and was reviewing the circumstances of the incident, along with previous cases, to decide whether further action was required.

A woman, on the left, stands next to a man outside a damaged yellow-brick wall and wooden fence. The woman is wearing a black raincoat, with the hood up, over a black and white dress. The man is wearing a grey coat with drops of rain on the shoulders. A house can be seen in the background.
Graham Pearson and his daughter Hannah McKinlay want a change to the speed limit

Pearson's daughter Hannah McKinlay, 34, moved out of the house in 2024, two years after another cement mixer overturned and flattened part of the garden wall.

She said the latest crash "brought all the stress and anxiety back".

"It's terrifying to think what could have happened," she added.

"Who's got to die before something can be done?"

Pearson, who has lived in East Keal for five years, said he had compiled a timeline of 15 incidents at the bend from 2019.

These included a crash involving a lorry and a car, a vehicle mounting a roadside barrier and an overturned tractor.

Footage of the previous cement mixer crash in 2022, taken from Graham Pearson's home

He has set up an online petition calling for a change to the speed limit, which has been signed by more than 220 people.

"The advisory limit was put in after the last event, but it's not enough," he said.

"People are scared to walk around that corner."

Shaun Butcher, highways manager at Lincolnshire County Council said "several" safety measures had been introduced since the crash in 2022, including an advisory speed limit of 20mph, road markings and warning signs.

However, a mandatory 20mph speed limit or additional enforcement "would need to meet national guidance" and would be considered alongside Lincolnshire Road Safety Partnership.

A brick wall and wooden fencing have been crashed into. The wall has several large cracks within the brickwork and has become unstable in places. A large pile of dirt has been pushed towards the brick wall. Wooden fences behind it are dislodged and displaced.
The garden wall was badly damaged in the latest crash

Neil Allen, who lives nearby, described hearing the latest crash.

"I heard a horrific bang and then I heard people shouting and screaming," the 65-year-old said.

He called on Lincolnshire County Council to take his concerns "seriously".

"You're thinking, is it going to be me that dies, and will they even do anything then?"

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