Nurse killed in crash 'would have been on Covid front line'

Nurse Tanya Forrest was killed in the crash which also seriously injured her mother

The family of a nurse killed in a crash when a lorry driver reached to get a drink from his bag have paid tribute to her.

Tanya Forrest died in the smash near Cramlington, Northumberland, in 2019.

The 51-year-old would have been "on the front line against Covid-19" had she not died, her family said.

Kenneth Wilson, 55, of Milton Road, Carcroft, Doncaster, was jailed for two years, four months, after admitting causing death by dangerous driving.

He also pleaded guilty to causing serious injury by dangerous driving, relating to Ms Forrest's 75-year-old mother who was a passenger and who suffered life-changing injuries.

The crash happened on the morning of 3 November 2019.

Kenneth Wilson was jailed for two years, four months, and given a driving ban

Wilson had taken his eyes off the road to get a drink from his bag when he crashed his 18-tonne truck into the rear of the Ford Ka that had pulled over at the side of the A189 Spine Road, police said.

Ms Forrest, from Bedlington, was the driver of the vehicle and died at the scene.

"There were two things Tanya loved above anything, her family, and her vocation," her family said.

"We loved her and there are no words adequate for the deep grief and sorrow we feel at her untimely passing.

"She was a proud, dedicated, and skilled nurse. If she had not been killed in November 2019, she would have been on the front line against Covid-19, standing shoulder to shoulder with her colleagues in the NHS, caring for patients and working long hard hours to help eradicate this pandemic."

PC Steve Raeburn, of Northumbria Police's motor patrols department, said: "Wilson's lapse in concentration as he reached for a drink out of his bag has resulted in an absolutely catastrophic outcome.

"Had Wilson been paying attention, he should have been able to recognise and respond to the stationary vehicle that had pulled over at the side of the carriageway. He had sufficient opportunity to avoid the collision - but failed to do so."

Wilson was also banned from driving for three years, eight months, after being sentenced at Newcastle Crown Court on Friday.