First picture of woman killed outside Shell garage as man jailed

A man has been jailed for causing death by dangerous driving after Nicole Cummings was killed in a collision. Alec Keiran, 52, of Daisy Meadow, in Bamber Bridge, pleaded guilty to the offence at a previous hearing and was sentenced today, Thursday 26 September, at Liverpool Crown Court.

At around 8.30am on Thursday 10 August last year, emergency services were called to Wilbraham Street, near its junction with Scotland Road and a Shell garage, after reports of a collision involving a HGV and a pedestrian, now known to be Nicole Cummings. Cummings, 24, was pronounced dead at the scene.

In a statement issued today, Nicole’s family said: “The loss of Nicole has left a hole in all our hearts that cannot be filled. She will be forever loved and missed. Although Nicole had problems of her own, if she saw anybody in need, she would be the first to help. We have been told she would often help people with carrying shopping or whatever they needed.

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“We would sincerely like to thank everyone who has ever shown Nicole any kindness, whether that be by giving her a drink or something to eat or spending time just to have a little chat with her. There are some truly wonderful kind people."

Nicole’s mum, Vanessa, added: “My daughter Nicole, I miss you every day it hurts so much. We miss your smile, laugh, and our daily phone calls. Your brothers and sisters miss you so much and so do your friends. My heart will forever be broken until we meet again my angel. Sleep tight, all my love, mum xxx.”

Nicole Cummings was sleeping rough outside the Shell garage on Scotland Road when she was hit by the lorry. A post-mortem ruled her cause of death was "multiple crush injuries to the neck, head and chest".

Keiran was jailed for 12 months today for causing death by dangerous driving and was also issued with a 12-month driving ban to commence upon his release. Detective Sergeant Kurt Timpson, lead investigating officer from the MATRIX serious collision investigation unit, said: “Our thoughts remain very much with Nicole’s family today as they continue to come to terms with their loss.

"They have shown remarkable composure throughout the investigation and have been supported by an experienced specially trained Family Liaison Officer throughout the case.

“Nicole was homeless and was well known by many people in the local area. She had been helped and supported by local organisations and charities and it’s clear from speaking with her family just how friendly and helpful she was to others.

“Any death on the road causes unimaginable harm and heartache to family and friends left behind. We see too often the needless harm that road death causes to our communities and we work tirelessly to reduce that harm.

“We are committed to the prevention of serious injury and death on the roads, to work towards Vision Zero – our strategy focused on reducing the amount of road traffic collisions in our region and to lower the number of people killed and seriously injured on our streets.

“We can’t do this alone and to that end, any information you have about drivers who flout the law can be reported to us and we will take action.”