Call for Army training review after soldier 'crush' death

A coroner has recommended a review of Army training procedures following the death of a soldier on exercise on Dartmoor.

Pte Cameron Laing, 20, from Nottingham, was crushed by a truck while trying to manhandle a trailer on to a tow bar.

He suffered head and chest injuries and was pronounced dead at the scene at Bracken Tor, near Okehampton Army Camp, Devon, on 29 April last year.

The inquest jury at Exeter County Hall returned a narrative verdict.

A convoy of Army vehicles had been on its way to deliver storage containers to Okehampton Camp when the vehicles took a wrong turn after being directed by a Sat-nav system.

The father-to-be from Hucknall was helping colleagues in the Royal Logistics Corps manhandle the trailer on the gravel track, when a brake slipped and he was crushed between it and a truck.

An Army safety expert told the inquest a number of procedures had not been followed correctly in the run-up to the accident.

Lt Col Ian Burton also said fatigue may have played a part as the crews had exceeded the Army's normal 13-hour daily work limit when the accident happened just before 22:00.

Coroner Dr Elizabeth Earland said she would be writing to the Ministry of Defence recommending they review their training and development with regard to towing procedures.