Dudley van driver in fatal crash with tanker is named
A van driver who died in a crash with a tanker has been named by police as Robert Coulson.
The 71-year-old great grandfather, of Coppice Lane, Quarry Bank, was airlifted to Birmingham's Queen Elizabeth Hospital following the accident along the A449 Worcester Road, Kidderminster, on Tuesday. He died shortly after arrival.
Mr Coulson was driving a white Citroen Nemo panel van towards Kidderminster at around 11.45am when the crash with a DAF tanker took place. The van was wedged under the front section of the tanker and Mr Coulson had to be freed from the vehicle by fire crews.
Mr Coulson, who lived with his wife Sheila and was known to his family as Bob, worked as a part-time delivery driver at JS Optical Ltd on the Hoo Farm industrial estate, near to where the smash happened. His devastated family today paid tribute to him as 'a fun man, someone you could have a real laugh with'.
Mr Coulson married Sheila in 1980 and yesterday would have been their wedding anniversary.
He also leaves a step-daughter, Lindy Parkes, her five children who regarded him as their grandfather, and one great-grandchild.
Mr Coulson was born in Kinver, and attended Oldswinford Hospital School in Stourbridge.
He lived at the Clee Hills in Shropshire for a while and also spent time living in South Africa. But the majority of his life was spent in the Black Country. He was a keen footballer when he was younger, but when he was older turned to golf and particularly enjoyed playing at the caravan the family used to own near Ludlow.
He worked at the Eaton factory on Thorns Road, Brierley Hill, before retiring.
Mrs Parkes said: "Bob was lovely, everyone liked him. He was a fun man, someone you could have a real laugh with."
Mr Coulson's funeral will take place at Stourbridge Crematorium, but the date has not yet been set.
Police are still asking for witnesses to the smash to come forward.
Anyone with information is asked to call Pc Lee Baker in the Operational Policing Unit at Rubery Police Station on the non-emergency number 101, quoting the incident reference 221-S-250214.
