The death of a retired civil servant who suffered fatal head injuries when she was blown up by a search and rescue helicopter that landed at a hospital was an accident, a jury has found.

Jean Langan, 87, attended Derriford Hospital in Plymouth, Devon, to be fitted with a hearing aid and was walking with her granddaughter back to their car in the hospital car park on March 4, 2022.

Exeter Coroner’s Court heard how Mrs Langan and her granddaughter Gael were blown up by the helicopter’s downwash, which left the grandmother with fatal head injuries.

Mother-of-one Mrs Langan, who was born in Liverpool and lived in Plymouth, was treated by paramedics and doctors at the hospital but died around three hours later.

A jury concluded her death was an accident after hearing evidence at the inquest this week.

They said: “On 4 March 2022, Jean Langan attended Derriford Hospital with her niece for a hearing appointment.

“As they were walking back to their car, which was parked in an unrestricted public car park, a landing helicopter caused Jean to fall backwards and hit her head on the ground.

“She suffered a serious head injury which caused her to lose consciousness. Jean was taken to hospital for treatment but sadly died shortly afterwards.

“At the time of her fall, Jean was not restricted to the area.”

The inquest heard that the Air Accidents Investigation Branch (AAIB) investigated and published a report on the incident.

Senior Coroner Ian Arrow told jurors they would not investigate matters the AAIB had already examined, meaning there would be no evidence from witnesses from when Ms Langan was injured.

The AAIB report, published last November, identified a number of failings which put members of the public at risk.

It was found that members of the public were not prevented from being close to the hospital’s helipad when the helicopters were landing.

As part of the inquiry into preventing future deaths, Mr Arrow was told the car park was now permanently closed to members of the public.

Mr Arrow asked for a letter from heli operator Bristow to identify outstanding issues that need to be addressed, including a database of heliports across the country.

Once it was received, Mr Arrow would write to the Department for Transport, he said.

At the conclusion of the inquest, he told Ms Langan’s family: “You attended a routine hospital appointment and for the incident to develop as it did is something that should not have happened.

“I will write to the Department of Transport in due course.”

He added: “Thank you family members for your dignity and the interest you have shown in trying to prevent this from happening to other people.”

The inquest heard a statement from Mrs Langan’s family, who said she “adored” her grandchildren and was “always on the move”, describing her as an expert knitter who walked her dog every day.

CCTV footage taken from the hospital car park on the day of the incident was released to the media following the conclusion of the investigation.

They show people walking next to the wall of the heliport, then falling to the ground as the search and rescue helicopter makes landfall.

The footage also shows paramedics waiting with ambulances in the car park, as well as members of the public rushing to Mrs Langan’s aid after she collapsed.

Dr. Home Office pathologist Amanda Jeffery told the inquest that Ms Langan suffered “significant” head injuries and died around three-and-a-half hours after the incident.

The medical cause of Mrs Langan’s death was recorded as a head injury by the inquest jury.

Following the hearing, her family issued a statement through Devon County Council.

They said: “Jean’s death was a devastating, tragic event that should never have happened.

“Jean had every right to expect to be able to walk safely on a public footpath within the hospital grounds. The loss and suffering the family is suffering is immeasurable.

“Jean was the matriarch of the family and is still very much loved and missed every day.”

They said they were “disappointed” that witness statements about what happened to Ms Langan could not be read during the inquest.

“Through the investigative process we were informed that there were multiple failures across a number of agencies that led to this fatal incident,” they added.

“The family trust that these proceedings, together with the actions that have been proposed and that are being taken by all the agencies involved, will mean that this terrible situation will never happen to anyone else.”