The dad died at the scene following a crash with a lorry
An inquest has concluded that a private ambulance driver, who had drifted into the path of a lorry on the A251 Ashford Road in Faversham, died from various injuries. Loved father Kevin Goldsmith of Sheerness was struck by an approaching DAF truck and declared dead at the spot while travelling to William Harvey Hospital with a passenger who preferred to remain anonymous, the court heard.
At an inquest conducted at Oakwood House in Maidstone on Friday, September 13, coroner Katrina Hepburn stated that the 54-year-old was driving at around 40 mph when the incident occurred on February 29. She was reading a report by forensic collision investigator Robert Yates. According to the investigation, Kevin did not negotiate the left-hand bend while operating a Ford transit van Stuart Ashton, the truck driver, had barely “a little more than a second” to react before the collision.
Stuart was transporting items to a supermarket at the time, but the report stated that the collision was “unavoidable,” therefore he was powerless to stop it. “Kevin Goldsmith attempted to swerve,” it stated. He was powerless to escape it.
The coroner brought up the issues of exhaustion, a medical condition, and distraction in an attempt to determine what caused Kevin to cross the single-carriageway’s central line. According to the toxicological result, Kevin’s paracetamol consumption was limited to a “therapeutic level.” There were no health issues highlighted.\
According to the passenger in the van at the time of the event, Kevin didn’t seem fatigued, and they were “having a laugh” and he was “in a good mood.” Just prior to the crash, the passenger noticed Kevin veering sharply to the left while watching videos on TikTok on his phone.
The most recent activity on Kevin’s phone was logged a few hours prior, and the police report verified that he did not use it while driving. Additionally, it states that the airbags deflated during the collision and that every passenger was buckled up.
The “primary cause” of the collision, according to the investigation, was the driver of the Ford van. When coroner Hepburn aired dash cam footage of the incident and a CCTV from a nearby property displaying a video of the crash, emotions were running high in the courtroom. Despite being given the option to leave when the court showed the footage, the family members all chose to stay.
According to the dash cam, the truck was travelling at about 23 mph and had slowed down before the collision, the court heard. The coroner read out her findings and stated, “We do not know why the drifted into the oncoming carriageway.” Kevin was gravely injured and passed away immediately after the incident.
“I am confident there were no contributing road issues or any other reason for the vehicle to have moved over,” she continued.
Multiple injuries was listed as the medical cause of death by her. The most appropriate finding, according to coroner Hepburn, was “road traffic accident.”
Tracey Goldsmith, his distraught and heartbroken ex-wife, who was present, had earlier told KentLive that she had lost her “best friend”. “Our world is completely destroyed, and I don’t know how I’m going to handle life without my best friend here. Despite our divorce, he remained my pillar of support and my greatest admirer. No matter what, he always had my back,” Tracey remarked.
According to Tracey, they had two young children together. In 2010, Kevin moved in to take on her three children, Alex being seven, Jess being twelve, and Molly being thirteen.
