Whitland: Man killed after panicked cow escapes from market

A man died after being trampled by a cow that had escaped from a nearby market, an inquest has heard.

Retired council worker Huw Evans, 75, was crossing the road in Whitland, Carmarthenshire on 19 November 2022 when he was confronted by an "extremely agitated" cow.

Llanelli Coroner's Court heard he suffered multiple serious injuries and died in hospital six days later.

Whitland Mart, a livestock market, has since installed a cattle grid.

Mr Evans, described as a beloved father and grandfather, was airlifted to the University Hospital of Wales in Cardiff after being trampled, the inquest heard on Wednesday.

The cow, a nine-year-old brown Limousin breed, escaped while being unloaded from a trailer at the market.

Jurors were read statements from witnesses, including the cow's owner Paula Wilson, who said she was "very upset" about what happened to Mr Evans and to the cow, which was shot by police.

She said the cow "wasn't distressed" when it was loaded for transport.

Elgan Rees Williams, a drover with 36 years of experience, described how the cow "went wild" as he and colleague Gordon Silwyn George were preparing to unload it.

"She just pushed the gate, bent the gate and flew out," Mr Williams told the hearing. "She ran out straight for the road. We tried to stop her, there were three or four of us by then."

Mr Williams described how they followed the cow into Whitland and tried to shut it into the fire station yard but it escaped through a back gate before attacking Mr Evans.

He said he had never experienced a cow acting in that manner in his many years of droving.

The inquest heard Mr George was thrown onto the back of a pick-up truck by the cow as he attempted to stop it from running onto the main road.

Sian Murrow, also a drover, said the cow ran towards the Co-op store in Whitland after escaping from the fire station yard.

"We saw the cow running towards our direction with its head down as if it was going to charge us," he said.

"We ran back to avoid getting struck by the cow. I saw an elderly man crossing the road. At this point, the male was halfway across the road. I witnessed the cow going towards him.

"It was in an extremely agitated state."

The jury concluded Mr Evans' death was caused by pneumonia, multiple rib fractures, trample injuries sustained from a cow, severe mitral regurgitation, renal failure and frailty of old age.

Finley Harrison, from the Health and Safety Executive, said Whitland Mart had been served a formal notice to install a cattle grid following the incident, which it had done.

"There was full cooperation," Mr Harrison added.