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CrashStats

Fatal A68 crash in County Durham on 23 May 2003 at 03:30 involving a Ford Sierra

A Ford Sierra, a van and two lorries were involved in a crash on the A68 in County Durham at 03:30 on Friday 23 May 2003. A 15-year-old male passenger in the Ford Sierra was killed and the 16-year-old male driver of the Ford Sierra was slightly injured.

It happened after dark with no street lighting in fine weather on a dry single carriageway with a 60 mph limit, away from any junction.

Severity
Fatal
Date
23 May 2003
Friday, 03:30
Vehicles
4
Ford Sierra and 3 others
Casualties
2
1 killed, 1 slightly injured

Location of the crash

Police recorded the crash at latitude 54.70724, longitude -1.78797, in the DL15 postcode district.

Map of where the crash happened in County Durham

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  • 1 crash
  • Fatal

Collision details

Basic information

Reference
200311AA14750
Council area
County Durham
Police force
Durham
Police attended the scene
Yes

Road and location details

First road class
A
First road number
68
Road type
Single carriageway
Speed limit
60 mph
Urban or rural
Rural
Trunk road
Non-trunk road

Junction information

Junction type
Not at junction or within 20 metres

Pedestrian crossing information

Crossing facilities
No physical crossing facility within 50 m

Environmental conditions

Light conditions
Dark, no street lighting
Weather
Fine, no high winds
Road surface
Dry

The 6 nearest recorded crashes

The nearest, 120 metres away, was a slight injury crash on 13 October 1988.

Vehicles involved (4)

  • Vehicle 1: Ford Sierra

    Car

    Manoeuvre
    Overtaking stationary vehicle on its offside
    Travelling from
    North West
    Travelling to
    South East
    Hit object in carriageway
    Parked vehicle
    First point of impact
    Front
    Driver sex
    Male
    Driver age
    16 years
    Engine capacity
    1,993 cc
    Fuel or propulsion
    Petrol

  • Vehicle 2: Van

    Van or goods vehicle up to 3.5 tonnes

    Manoeuvre
    Going ahead
    Travelling from
    North West
    Travelling to
    South East
    Skidding and overturning
    Skidded
    First point of impact
    Did not impact
    Driver sex
    Male
    Driver age
    45 years

  • Vehicle 3: Lorry

    Goods vehicle 3.5 to 7.5 tonnes

    Manoeuvre
    Parked
    Travelling from
    Parked
    Travelling to
    Parked
    First point of impact
    Back
    Driver sex
    Male
    Driver age
    19 years

  • Vehicle 4: Lorry

    Goods vehicle 3.5 to 7.5 tonnes

    Towing and articulation
    Single trailer
    Manoeuvre
    Parked
    Travelling from
    Parked
    Travelling to
    Parked
    First point of impact
    Did not impact
    Driver sex
    Male
    Driver age
    21 years

Casualties (2)

  • Casualty 1: Driver

    Slight

    Male, aged 16, car occupant, in vehicle 1 (Ford Sierra)

  • Casualty 2: Passenger

    Fatal

    Male, aged 15, car occupant, in vehicle 1 (Ford Sierra)

    Car passenger
    Front seat passenger

Data source

This record comes from the Department for Transport’s road safety data (STATS19), in which police forces in Great Britain record every road crash reported to them where someone was injured. It is reference 200311AA14750 in the data published on GOV.UK under the Open Government Licence v3.0, and one of the crashes counted in the County Durham road accident statistics for 2003.