Torpoint woman breaks ankle falling over massive pothole

A pensioner has broken an ankle after falling over a giant pothole in a road in Torpoint.

Christine Eileen Ladner was injured after tripping over one of the holes in Sydney Road, which is an unadopted highway - meaning the council is not responsible for it.

Residents say the road has not been resurfaced in years and has slowly deteriorated.

David Richard, who is related to Christine, said it was a “complicated” situation where no one seems to want to take responsibility for the repairs.

“It’s a shared place as far as we’re aware and the owners and tenants should be sorting it out because it needs to get done,” he said.

"But they’re obviously not doing it so I just feel that somebody needs to tell them that they need to do it."

He said the road being unadopted means that nobody legally has to do anything and as a result it’s become a bit of a "death trap".

David added: “I just can’t believe I’m seeing roads like that in this day and age.

“I’m ex-forces and I know what bad roads are so to see a road like that in the UK is just mind blowing really and everyone is trying to pass the buck basically.”

Despite the road being unadopted, David believes Cornwall Council should carry out the repairs.

But a spokesperson for the local authority said it was a matter for homeowners.

"Sydney Road in Torpoint is a private road, which means Cornwall Council is not responsible for the upkeep or repair of the road surface,” he said.

"At the time of purchasing their properties and as part of the conveyancing process homeowners should have been advised of their responsibilities towards the maintenance and upkeep of the road."