Woman killed on the A47 was visually impaired

A woman killed when she was hit by a van on a major road had been drinking and had a serious visual impairment, a coroner has heard.

Margarita Korolkevic, from Wisbech, Cambridgeshire, had been admitted to Queen Elizabeth Hospital in King's Lynn last November having been found in Wisbech cemetery with her eyes "rolling backwards".

The 49-year-old left the hospital before being treated, and although staff booked her a taxi she later walked into King's Lynn and on to the A47 near Saddlebow, where she was killed.

Miss Korolkevic's sister told coroner Christopher Leach that her sister had been failed by care services, but he concluded she died due to a road traffic collision.

Emergency services were called to the scene just before 22:00 GMT on Sunday 17 November 2024.

An inquest at Norfolk Coroner's Court in Norwich heard from witness Gregory Driver, who said he had seen a woman waving her hands "in distress" in the central reservation.

He turned around at the Pullover roundabout but by the time he arrived Miss Korolkevic had been hit by a Renault Trafic van driven by Lee Seager-Jones, a delivery driver with 25 years' experience.

Mr Seager-Jones said he suddenly became aware of someone in the road, running from right to left.

"I didn't know what I could do," he said. "I went for the brakes immediately. I could see them hitting the windscreen on the right side and then disappeared from view.

"I called the police and said I thought I had killed someone and needed an ambulance."

History of alcohol use

Miss Korolkevic was born in Lithuania but had lived in the Wisbech area since about 2015.

She had a serious sight impairment that would have required her to be assisted in crossing roads, said Claire Vile, a vision rehabilitation specialist.

Her GP records showed a history of poor mental health and alcohol use. The court heard she had periods of sobriety but a toxicology report found she was twice the legal drink-drive limit when she died.

Miss Korolkevic had reported that she suffered from domestic violence and that she self-harmed.

But the coroner said there was no evidence that she intended to cause self-harm on this occasion.

Her sister, Ana Podberiozkina, said that despite living in separate countries they were close and spoke every day.

In a statement, she said: "There is no accountability for the systematic failures that led to her death.

"Her death was not inevitable. It was preventable. People did not protect her.

"I will ensure the failures of her death are acknowledged so no-one else in a similar situation suffers the same fate."

However, in summing up, Mr Leach said: "Margarita was a pedestrian on a poorly lit road in the dark, who had a visual impairment and was likely suffering the effects of alcohol when she was struck by a vehicle."