Woman dies in de-icing accident in Widnes

21 October 2010 Last updated at 14:19 GMT

A mother-of-two died after she became caught underneath her car as she was trying to de-ice it, police said.

Andrea Southern, 43, of Whickham Close, Widnes, was found trapped under her Fiat Panda outside her home by a neighbour on Wednesday morning.

She was taken to Whiston Hospital but died later that day.

Cheshire Police believe the car rolled backwards as the woman was de-icing it and she was dragged under the front wheels.

Mrs Southern is thought to have been trapped for about half-an-hour before her neighbour found her.

'Utter tragedy'

Mr Southern was too upset to talk and was being comforted by family and friends.

A Cheshire Police spokeswoman said: "Her family are devastated at the loss of a loving wife and mother."

The black Fiat Panda, which was on the sloping driveway of the home she shared with her husband John and two daughters, aged eight and 12, has been removed for examination.

Ryan Gregson, 21, who lives across the road, witnessed paramedics battling to save Mrs Southern.

He said: "It's an utter tragedy.

"She was a lovely woman, quite quiet and they had two young daughters."

A police spokeswoman appealed to anyone in the area between 0615 and 0700 BST on Wednesday to get in touch.

"This may help police piece together the sequence of events resulting in the woman's tragic death," she added.

From: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-merseyside-11594571