Kiwi death in London an accident 'waiting to happen'

Jacob Marx and Natalie Chung were on their OE in London when Mr Marx was killed by a shop sign nearly two years ago.

Shop sign that killed Kiwi could have fallen down any time, London inquest told.

The death of a New Zealand lawyer in London from a falling shop sign was an accident "waiting to happen" because the sign was not properly secured, an inquest has been told.

Jacob Marx, 27, who was living in Islington, suffered severe head injuries when he was hit by a 9m metal sign in Camden Town as he walked past a William Hill betting shop in high winds in 2013.

The sign could have fallen down "at any time, with anyone", Steven Simmons-Jacobs, a Health and Safety Executive inspector who carried out an inspection of the shop front after Mr Marx's death, told St Pancras Coroner's Court.

The sign was not properly screwed on, and was being held up by small "panel pins", which were not designed to hold the weight of a large sign, the Islington Gazette reported him as saying.

Rainwater had poured into the wood behind the sign, causing it to buckle, and no one had checked to see if the sign and its fixings were still in good condition, Mr Simmons-Jacobs told the jury inquest.

"Unfortunately, it happened on that day with that poor gentleman passing by."

Mr Marx, who was originally from Gisborne, was struck on the head and neck by the sign on January 28, 2013. Several bystanders witnessed what happened, and ran to his aid. They pulled the sign off him before paramedics from a passing ambulance attempted to resuscitate him

He was taken to hospital, but died shortly after.

Off-duty Constable Dylan Wright said he was on his way to the cinema when he heard a "loud snap".

"I heard a scream. I looked over and saw there was a body underneath where the sign had fallen. I immediately ran over," the Islington Gazette reported him as saying. "There was blood coming out from under the sign."

His girlfriend, Natalie Chung, revealed they had planned to get married. They had been together for nine years and had been in London four months.