Polish lorry driver caused fatal crash by driving on wrong side of road
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A Polish lorry driver caused a fatal head-on collision by driving on the wrong side of the road because he forgot he was in England.
Zdzislaw Podolak (55) was jailed for two-and-a-half years yesterday, after admitting causing the death of Gavin Smith by driving dangerously.
The tragedy happened at 6am on February 23 last year as Mr Smith was setting off with friends on a skiing holiday.
Podolak’s HGV encountered their Land Rover Discovery on the Shoby Bends, on the A6006 near Melton.
Victoria Rose, prosecuting, told Leicester Crown Court the Land Rover was being driven by Thomas Freeman, with Mr Smith in the front passenger seat and Mike Pratt in the back.
The three, all from Melton, were on their way to pick up Jason Addenbrook, of Old Dalby, en route to East Midlands Airport.
Miss Rose said: "As Mr Freeman went round the corner, the defendant’s HGV was immediately in front.
"It had its headlights on and was completely on the wrong side of the road.
“Mr Freeman swerved to the right but the front nearside impacted with the HGV, where Mr Smith was sitting.”
He died at the scene from chest injuries. Mr Smith (34) was not wearing a seat belt.
His friends suffered minor injuries.
Miss Rose said there was “significant damage” to the vehicles, both travelling at between 25mph to 30mph, although the lorry had braked to 13.4mph at the time of impact.
She said: “In interview, Podolak admitted he was on the wrong side of the road. He said he forgot he was in the UK.”
Miss Rose said Mr Smith’s death has “devastated” his wife Jenny and their four-year-old son, Edward.
In a statement referred to in court, Mrs Smith described being “torn apart” by the loss.
Miss Rose said: “She’s trying to rebuild her life and is facing difficult times as a single parent. She’s lost a loving husband who was her closest friend.”
Helen Johnson, mitigating said: "He’s used to driving principally in Europe and on the other side of the road.
"It was dark and perhaps the confusion arose when he was lost and seeking to get back to where he needed to be.
"Neither driver would have seen each other until they came upon each other.
“He should have realised he was on the wrong side of the road. He simply made a mistake, it was human error.”
She said Podolak lived in Poland, supporting his wife, their 12-year-old child and his 87-year-old blind mother.
A lorry driver for 20 years, he had no previous convictions.
Judge Robert Brown banned Podolak from driving in the UK for three years.
He said: "Miss Johnson (representing Podolak) says it was human error and I agree.
"But it was a very grave error causing substantial risk to other road users.
“This was a blind bend, a severe bend. Mr Freeman was driving perfectly properly and didn’t contribute to the collision.”
Mr Smith, who grew up in Market Harborough, and worked in farming and later for John Morris, in Rutland, dealing with groundwork for Anglian Water and gritting around the county.
