A woman tragically lost her life after a fall on an escalator at a shopping centre. The victim, an elderly woman, bled uncontrollably in the fatal incident, a court has heard.
An inquest into the death of Margaret Rose Harris, held at Swansea’s Guildhall on Tuesday, revealed that the 90-year-old succumbed to external bleeding due to traumatic lacerations to her right leg.
The incident occurred on the escalator at WH Smith in the Quadrant Shopping Centre in Swansea city centre on Tuesday, January 21, of this year. The once dominant retailer has shuttered many stores in recent months, disappearing from towns and cities after being sold for £76 million.
Ms Harris had been taking two common medications that are believed to have contributed to the uncontrollable bleeding that resulted from the escalator fall.
The inquest heard that Ms Harris, a retired administrator from Miers Street in St Thomas, had been taking apixaban and aspirin, which likely exacerbated the continuous bleeding following the injury.
There were no reported faults with the escalator or the surrounding area.
The official cause of death was listed as external bleeding, traumatic laceration of soft tissues of the right leg, and coronary atheroma, WalesOnline reports.
Senior coroner Aled Gruffydd concluded that the death was accidental.