Man 'killed instantly' by oak tree falling on car

Devon County Council had been warned about the "extensively decayed" 200-year-old tree in 2013, the inquest heard

A driver was killed instantly after a large oak tree fell on his car during a storm, an inquest has heard.

Nicholas Marino, 50, suffered a "catastrophic and unsurvivable head injury" on the A384 in Devon.

The local council had been warned about the "extensively decayed" 200-year-old tree in 2013, the inquest heard.

Mr Marino, who was on his way to work, died in the strong winds and heavy rain of Storm Erik on 8 February 2019.

The St Austell Brewery delivery driver was driving in winds of up 63mph (101kmph) when the tree fell, crushing his Alfa Romeo to half its usual height.

'Tragedy'

Det Con Dan Ritson, collision investigator, said the oak tree was "very extensively decayed at its base" and was on an unregistered plot of land close to the road from Buckfastleigh to Totnes.

Devon County Council was warned about issues with the tree in 2013, he said, and there had been human error in tree data recording, meaning future opportunities to remove the tree were lost.

The legal landowner was disputed and the Land Registry had been unable to clarify who owned the land, the inquest in Plymouth heard.

The council is now making annual inspections of trees on A roads because of dying trees with the ash dieback disease.

Coroner Ian Arrow described the event as a "tragedy", and said strong winds from Storm Erik brought down the decayed tree.

He recorded a conclusion of accidental death.