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Susan Bidgood will seek compensation after slipping on oil on Sheerness High Street

A woman who broke her leg after slipping on oil left on a high street says she will be seeking compensation.

Susan Bidgood smashed into the pavement on Sheerness High Street on Monday, October 15, breaking her leg in two places.

The force of the fall seriously damaged her right ankle.

Susan Bidgood in her hospital bed (4952743)
Susan Bidgood in her hospital bed (4952743)

She then had to wait two hours in agony until an ambulance could take her to Medway Maritime Hospital 20 miles away for emergency treatment.

Miss Bidgood, 68, of Jefferson Road, Sheerness, said from her hospital bed: “Events are a blur of pain but many people were so kind. I can’t thank them enough.

“They even contacted my friend Hilda Robins at home to tell her what had happened."

Miss Bidgood was in town getting money from the NatWest cash machine when she slipped on fat on the pavement.

It is believed to have been cooking oil which had been poured down the drains and then flooded out after rain.

Susan Bidgood being taken away by ambulance after slipping on oil in Sheerness High Street
Susan Bidgood being taken away by ambulance after slipping on oil in Sheerness High Street
Workers cleaned up the pavement after Susan Bidgood slipped on oil in Sheerness High Street
Workers cleaned up the pavement after Susan Bidgood slipped on oil in Sheerness High Street
Susan Bidgood's injured leg (4910405)
Susan Bidgood's injured leg (4910405)

She said: “I remember crossing the road and sliding and then my leg hit the kerb.

"Doctors say it will be at least eight to nine weeks before I can walk again and that I will need specialised equipment.

“I am going to need a lot of help so I will need some kind of compensation. I am not sure who to claim from but people tell me the danger had been reported to the council the previous week.”

Bank branch manager Julie Goulding and her staff leapt to Miss Bidgood’s aid along with barber Lee Gibbons from Hair Profile.

They borrowed a wheelchair from a nearby mobility centre in Russell Street and then kept her warn inside the bank.

Surgeons have to install steels rods, plates and screws in her leg but had to wait until the weekend because of the swelling.

Susan Bidgood before her fall
Susan Bidgood before her fall

She is expecting to wear a plaster cast for at least eight weeks.

She said: “It’s very frustrating. I love swimming and walk everywhere because I don’t drive.”

Miss Bidgood is a regular contributor to the Sheppey History Facebook page and at least twice a week can normally be found in Sheerness library researching about Blue Town, where she grew up.

She is a member of the Forget-me-Not Travel group run by Alan Lambkin and his partner Denise.

At least two other people said they had slipped and injured themselves in the same area.

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