Four cyclists killed in collision with car

Four cyclists died in a road accident yesterday after a car collided with them at a notorious accident blackspot in North Wales.

Twelve members of Rhyl Cycling Club were cycling on icy roads in Abegele when a Toyota Corolla was in collision with the group, killing one teenager and three men. Jon Harland, who was part of the group and escaped with a broken leg, watched as his son Thomas, 14, was hit and killed by the car.

The other casualties were Wayne Wilkes, 42, a father of two children, Maurice Broadbent, the club's chairman in his 60s, who leaves his wife, son and daughter. The other casualty was Dave Horrocks, 49, according to Scott Eccles, secretary of Rhyl Cycling Club.

Mr Eccles said the group had been on the A547 Ludland Road. In September, the road was named one of the 11 most deadly roads in North Wales by police.

All the cyclists were from the Rhyl area, and are believed to have been on a 50-mile round trip when the crash happened just west of Abergele. Mr Eccles said: "There was a kink in the road and it was icy. Apparently there had been an accident on the same stretch earlier. The car lost control, went up the grass verge, and then it came across the road and into them. They were dead straight away."

Forensic officers were picking their way through the mangled bicycle frames yesterday to establish the cause of the crash. Chief Inspector Lyn Adams, from North Wales Police, said: "The driver lost control because of the ice on the road. There is no indication to suggest this is down to something like excessive speed.

"Our best estimate at the moment is that the car is driving at something like 50 miles per hour. And on a road like this, that isn't excessive speed. The driver has been taken to hospital and is clearly traumatised," he said.