A YORK pensioner who died in a freak accident when a toppling traffic light column hit her on the head had simply been in the wrong place at the wrong time, an inquest was told.

North Yorkshire West coroner Geoff Fell, sitting at Harrogate Magistrates Court, heard yesterday how 67-year-old Pamela Kirby, of Scarfell Close, Rawcliffe, York, had been crossing King's Road, Harrogate, at its junction with Cheltenham Crescent, when a 4x4 driver was taken ill at the wheel.

Police accident investigator PC Graham McCulloch said 79-year-old Sheila Barron, of Leeds Road, Harrogate, had lost control of her Suzuki Vitara and hit a traffic island safety fence which had struck a traffic light column and knocked it over.

Mrs Kirby, who had been on an island refuge waiting for the lights to change in her favour, had been going about her day-to-day business when she was killed.

PC McCulloch said: Mrs Kirby, who was most definitely the innocent party, had simply been in the wrong place at the wrong time.'' Mr Fell, who recorded an accidental death verdict, said paramedics had reported that when they arrived on the scene Mrs Barron had been showing classic signs of having suffered a stroke. She had never been able to speak after the incident and had never been released from hospital where she had a fatal stroke eight days later.

Mrs Kirby had been out with one of her daughters, Joanne, who told the inquest the pair had been talking as they waited for the pedestrian crossing light to go green.

Out of the corner of my eye I saw a Suzuki 4x4 coming up King's Road,'' said Miss Kirby. It seemed to be going quite fast.

"Then, all of a sudden, it started weaving about. It weaved four times and it happened so quickly.'' The Suzuki had been heading for them. I thought if I didn't get out of the way it would hit me.

"So my instinct was to get out of the way. The car was coming towards me more than mum and I jumped into the road out of the way. I didn't see the way my mum went, but presumed she turned the other way.

"When I turned round she was lying on the floor.'' Summing up, Mr Fell said it was not often that a road traffic collision case came before him which could truly be described as an accident, but this was one.

He was satisfied Mrs Barron had been taken ill at the wheel, having probably had a stroke as she drove along and known nothing of what then occurred.