A DRIVER who died when his car transporter hit a bridge in North Yorkshire, may have had 'micro sleeps' moments before the impact, an inquest has heard.

An inquest held today (September 19) in Northallerton heard how Samuel Allen, 31, who worked as an HGV driver for Delta Salvage in Sandtoft Road, Doncaster, died on Tuesday, October 11 last year after his Scania truck crashed at 54mph into Beal Lane bridge on the M62 westbound near Selby.

The crash closed the M62 in both directions on the day as emergency services worked at the scene.

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In evidence PC Paddy Green, of North Yorkshire Police's accident investigation team, said the trajectory of the vehicle and the fact that there was no evidence of breaking meant Samuel may have had 'micro sleeps', very short periods of sleep that can be measured in seconds, rather than minutes, in the moments before the crash.

Summing up York and North Yorkshire area coroner Catherine Cundy said she was unable to say categorically whether that had been the case, but the trajectory of the vehicle was consistent with that and concluded that Samuel died due to a road traffic collision.

At the hearing the coroner said Mr Allen was driving on the M62 when his vehicle left the road and collided with the bridge parapet. He was confirmed dead at the scene.

His dad, Rob said his son, who was 6'5'' tall, was: "Incredibly generous, thoughtful, kind and helpful and fun to be around.

"He was well-loved, he was a big guy with a huge personality - he's left a big hole in our lives."

He described Samuel, who lived in Doncaster, as a workaholic who "never did anything by halves", and who had been going out with his partner, Clare Esler, for two and a half years.

The inquest heard he had visited Clare at her home in Glasgow the weekend before the crash. 

She said he was due to go for a dentist appointment on the morning of the crash and she spoke to him afterwards and he "sounded terrible" and told her that his tooth had crushed above the gum and that the root was stuck. He told her he was going into work but he would "just be doing yard work".

The inquest heard a statement from Angelica Tadros-Hadwin, a dental surgeon at Portman Dental and Implant Clinic in Scunthorpe, where Samuel went to have a molar removed on the morning of the crash.

She said that the root hadn't come out and Samuel decided to be referred for further treatment at a later date. He had anaesthetic and was prescribed antibiotics and there was no reason that he shouldn’t drive.

Dental nurse Lauren Callaghan, who x-rayed Samuel, said when he chatted to her he said he "hadn't slept yet" and he planned to go home to bed. She said he didn't appear tired at the time.

Setting out the timeline of events the corner said Samuel  left Doncaster at 2.20pm on Sunday, October 9 and drove to his partner's in Scotland. He was due in Northern Ireland to pick up three vehicles for work on Monday, October 10 and after that caught a ferry at 4.30pm on Monday, sleeping overnight in his vehicle.

On the day of the crash he arrived at Delta's Doncaster yard at 9.11am having started the drive back at 5.40am, after getting off the ferry. He arrived at the dentist in Scunthorpe at 10.25am leaving there at 11.31am, and returning to the Delta yard at 12.25am. At 1.55pm he left on a delivery to Middlesbrough with the crash happening at about 2.26pm.

The cause of Samuel's death was given as a fractured pelvis and internal haemorrhaging due to a lacerated liver.