Undertaker’s Fatal Coffin Lifter Mishap: Inquest Rules

Tragic Accident Claims Life of Funeral Administrator in Coffin Lifter Malfunction

An inquest has concluded that a beloved grandmother, Sally Blundell, 58, died a tragic death after a faulty coffin lifter malfunctioned and “descended unexpectedly,” crushing her. The funeral administrator was working alone at the East of England Co-op Funeral Services branch in Swaffham, Norfolk, in December 2023 when the incident occurred.

Mrs. Blundell was discovered trapped within the scissor lift, a device typically used to transport bodies from cold storage. The discovery was made by a colleague from a neighbouring branch after a customer arrived at the funeral parlour to find no staff present.

Circumstances of the Fatal Incident

The hearing was informed that it remained unclear why Mrs. Blundell had positioned herself within the frame of the lift. Her glasses were found on the floor, suggesting a potential moment of distraction or an attempt to retrieve something. Jurors returned a verdict of accidental death after reviewing the evidence presented at the inquest in Norwich.

CCTV footage confirmed Mrs. Blundell was last seen alive at 9:46 am. Her body was found at 12:06 pm, indicating the fatal incident occurred within this timeframe. It was noted during the inquest that the areas of the funeral parlour where bodies are stored lacked CCTV surveillance.

A Customer’s Concern Leads to Discovery

The alarm was raised when a woman with a scheduled appointment to view a deceased relative found the funeral parlour unattended. She contacted the celebrant she had been dealing with, who relayed the message. This prompted a colleague from the Dereham branch to visit the Swaffham location, where he tragically found Mrs. Blundell deceased.

Stephen Kemp, the colleague from the Dereham branch, subsequently contacted emergency services on December 1, 2023. Police Constable Luke Heffer testified in court that Mrs. Blundell was found in the rear room of the parlour, her body trapped in the scissor lift. She was positioned across a bar, with the upper part of her body inside the lift’s frame. The medical cause of death was officially recorded as “contusion and compression of the chest by an external object.”

Family’s Concerns and Equipment Failure

In a statement, Mrs. Blundell’s daughter, Lucy Blundell, revealed that her mother had previously expressed concerns about working alone.

An engineer presenting evidence to the jury explained that a critical spring within the hydraulic lift’s mechanism, responsible for closing a valve to prevent the table from lowering, had become “plastically deformed.” This deformation would have compromised the lift’s safety features.

Investigation and Safety Recommendations

Paul Bradbury, senior food and safety officer for Breckland Council, which led the investigation, confirmed that Mrs. Blundell was found “trapped in the mechanism of the mortuary hydraulic pump lift.” The specific equipment involved was a 200kg hydraulic scissor lift mortuary trolley, manufactured in 2008. Following the incident, the trolley was sent to the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) for a thorough examination.

Norfolk area coroner Yvonne Blake informed the jury that expert findings indicated a fault within the hydraulic scissor lift mortuary trolley was present after Mrs. Blundell’s death. The coroner concluded that the trolley had “descended unexpectedly.”

Coroner Blake indicated she was considering issuing a Prevention of Future Deaths report to the equipment’s manufacturer, A R Twigg and Son, to highlight concerns regarding this specific issue.

In response, barrister Dominic Kay, representing the East of England Co-op, informed the coroner that the funeral service chain no longer utilizes this particular model of trolley.