'Devoted' mother died after stolen BMW drove on wrong side of A63 near Hull, inquest told

A "devoted" mother died when her car was hit by a stolen BMW driving the wrong way down a dual carriageway, an inquest jury has heard.

Keen triathlete Alison Clark, 42, was killed in the head-on collision on the A63 near Hull on 22 November, 2021.

Hull Coroner's Court heard that the mother-of-one was returning home from a swim training session when the crash happened.

The occupants of the white BMW - Sam Connors, 19, William Harty, 20, and Lawrence James, 21 - also died.

Assistant coroner Ian Sprakes told the jury police had followed the BMW until the stolen car went up the wrong slipway, towards the westbound carriageway of the A63 near North Ferriby.

Mr Sprakes said the BMW drove for more than a mile towards Hull on the wrong side of the road before colliding with the Peugeot being driven by Mrs Clark, who was from Elloughton in East Yorkshire.

The inquest heard that the catastrophic crash happened near a BP service station, close to the turn-off for the Humber Bridge.

The coroner said the BMW had been stolen in Barnsley, South Yorkshire, on 12 November, 2021 and came to police attention in Hull on the evening of 22 November because it was displaying false plates.

The coroner said Connors, Harty and James were believed to have been involved in the theft of catalytic converters from cars.

He briefly described the police attempts to follow and stop the vehicle as it travelled out of Hull on the A63 "at speed" and turned into an industrial estate at North Ferriby, where it came into contact with a patrol car which was trying to prevent it from leaving a dead end outside Melton police station.

Mr Sprakes said the police abandoned the authorised pursuit when the BMW went the wrong way around a roundabout and up the slip road towards the westbound carriageway of the A63 and headed east towards Hull.

The coroner told the jury the inquest may consider a number of issues,including the police tactics around the pursuit of the BMW and whether Humberside Police "caused or contributed to" the fatal collision.

He said another question for the inquest may be to determine which of the three men in the BMW was driving at the time of the crash.

Mr Sprakes warned the jury of five women and six men that some of the evidence they will hear during the 10-day inquest may be distressing.

In statements read to the court by family friend Geoff Ogden, Mrs Clark's husband, Rob, said his wife was devoted to their daughter, Emily, who was nine at the time of the crash.

He said his wife, who worked in finance, was born in north London and was brought up in Bristol, but the couple moved to the Humberside area in 2006.

Mrs Clark put her "heart and soul" into her local community, especially the local church in Elloughton and chairing the Friends of Elloughton School Association, her husband said.

She had set up a bereavement walking club in the wake of her father's death and had taken part in an walking event on the day she was killed, the hearing was told.

Mr Clark said in his statement: "As a person of charity and community she touched many.

"So many are in pain. I've heard her called 'my best friend' so many times."

Mr Clark said his wife's death has had a profound effect on their daughter, leaving "an immeasurable hole in her young life".

He added that "Emily was Alison's life" and the brutal way in which she was "taken from me" will "haunt me for the rest of my life".

No relatives of Mr Connors, Mr Harty and Mr James, all from Leeds, were present in court on Monday and they are not represented at their inquests.

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