A LOCAL parish councillor was killed when he inexplicably drove his hatchback into the path of an oncoming prison van, an inquest heard.

Seventy-eight-year-old Edward Hosken, from Liskeard, had just left a friend's house when the collision occurred not far from Plusha Junction on the A30.

The St Cleer councillor died of multiple injuries after a Reliance prison van, driven by custody officer Lesley Ford, hit him travelling at around 55 miles per hour.

Witnesses described seeing "what looked like an explosion" on impact, and as well as Mr Hosken being killed, the two prison officers in the van were injured.

An 18-year-old prisoner suffered a broken nose.

An inquest, at Truro City Hall, heard the crash happened at around quarter to four on August 21 last year.

Mr Hosken had been enjoying 'tea and a Welsh cake' with his lifelong friend Loveday Harrison at Mr and Mrs Harrison's bungalow just off the main road.

Driving away, he pulled his 306 hatchback into the busy A30, which was when the collision occurred.

A 'box' van carrying a prisoner from Truro Crown Court was heading up country in the inside lane of the A30 as Mr Hosken drove into the road.

The prison van driver Lesley Ford said she spotted Mr Hosken apparently parked in the inside lane as she drove over the brow of a hill.

She told the coroner: "I can't have been doing more than 55 miles per hour. It looked as if he were just parked there not moving. He didn't look at me. I pulled into the outside lane, but then he shot across into my path."

Electrical engineer Nathan Dogerell confirmed that was what happened. He told the court: "The prison van tried its best to avoid the Peugeot — but there was not much she could do."

Other witnesses to the crash described how the Transit Mr Dogerell was travelling in also had to swerve and missed the crash by inches.

He said: "There was nothing the van could reasonably have done to avoid the collision."

Assistant Deputy Coroner for Cornwall Barrie Van den Berg concluded no-one knew why Mr Hosken had appeared to pause in the road and then lurch across toward the outside lane.

The coroner said in his ruling: "It's clear there can be no blame attached to Lesley Ford. It must have been a really traumatic experience."

Mr Hosken of Stanton Bungalow, Crows Nest, Liskeard, died as the result of an accident.