An accident involving a female runner in the Wisbech parkrun at the weekend has prompted an inspection of the town park’s pathways.
The Mayor of Wisbech Sidney Imafidon accompanied by Fenland’s head of parks and open spaces, Phil Hughes, and Terry Leftley, a regular participant in the town’s park run, carried out an inspection of all the pathways on Monday.
The ambulance service attended and checked the woman over.
Cllr Imafidon said: “I have been calling for work to be done for months now, and although the place where this accident happened is not damaged, and it seems likely it was more of a balance issue, it led to Phil Hughes contacting me to carry out an inspection.
“We identified several areas that were in need of resurfacing and urgent attention, and looked at other ways to improve this valuable town asset.”
He continued: “Of particular concern is the bottom corner near Park Street, which is quite rough and always gets very muddy and slippery when it rains.
“It was agreed that work is needed, and Phil said he would get the contractors out to survey the area to see what needs to be done.
“We are also hoping to try to incorporate the improvements into the Fenland Council Inspire project – so it is unclear how soon the work will be carried out, but we are hoping it will be sooner rather than later.”
Cllr Imafidon posted about his park inspection to Facebook and among those to comment was a regular runner.
The woman runner, who has run in aid of charity and takes part in runs across the country, said: “The issue with this part of the parkrun course has been a concern for a long time. When I used to time keep, I saw many runners injure their ankles here, and it’s frustrating that it took a serious incident at the weekend for action to finally be taken.
“As a regular park user, I’m disappointed that concerns about safety weren’t addressed sooner.
“I hope this incident leads to real improvements, not just a reactive response, and that the council takes responsibility for properly maintaining the park to prevent further injuries.”
©Fenland Citizen
“We do the daily fitness walk around the park, and I have had a number of people come up to me complaining about the state of that area and asking for something to be done.
“I have also had mobility scooter users complain to me about it.
