John and Lynn King died instantly after their Ford Mondeo plummeted 300ft off a cliff on the Isle of Wight on Friday afternoon – with police now investigating the tragedy
A neighbour has recalled the last time he saw a bus driver and his frail wife just hours before their tragic death.
John and Lynn King – thought to be aged in their early 70s – died instantly after their Ford Mondeo plummeted 300ft off a cliff on Friday. The silver vehicle, which also contained their two Dachshund dogs, plunged to the ground after going off the ridge at Alum Bay on the Isle of Wight.
Lynn was so ill and frail she hadn’t left home for two years, neighbours said. One person told Mail Online: “It’s really sad, I spoke to John a few times. He would always park his car right outside my house. I think I saw his wife maybe twice in the three years they’d been living in the road.
“She wasn’t well. I don’t know exactly what she was suffering from but I think it was serious. John was effectively her carer. I never saw nurses or medically trained staff ever go in. I think he did everything for her.”
‘Frail’ woman pictured after she and husband plunged to death with dachshunds
The neighbour said he saw John help Lynn to the car on Friday afternoon. They also had their two dachshunds with them, the friend added. They said: “His wife looked really, really frail. She was hunched over quite badly and was finding it very difficult to walk. I was surprised to see her out of the house.
“That was the last time I saw them. They never came home.”
The neighbour added: “I don’t know if they had children or grandchildren. I’d say there were in their early 70s. But John was a nice guy and doted on his wife.”
John was a bus driver for Southern Vectis, an operator on the Isle of Wight, and it is understood he knew the roads across the island well.
Police continue to investigate the deaths and are believed to be searching the couple’s terraced home in Cowes, Isle of Wight.
Photos of the aftermath show the wreckage of the car submerged in the water. With the roof and bonnet crumpled, while coastguard searched around it.
Alum Bay crash: All we know as two dead after car plunges off Isle of Wight cliff
Police said on Monday: “We can confirm the death of two people, a woman and a man aged 66 and 67 respectively, following an incident at The Needles on the Isle of Wight on Friday 6 June.
“We were called at 7.21pm after a Ford Mondeo, which was being driven along Alum Bay New Road, left the road, came off the cliff top and came to rest in the water below. Two dogs, both Dachshunds, were also in the car and died in the incident.
“Formal identification procedures are ongoing, but next of kin have been notified. A post-mortem examination will take place on Tuesday 10 June.
“As part of the ongoing investigation into the incident, which has been referred to the Coroner, officers have been carrying out enquiries at an address on Arctic Road, Cowes to help them to establish what happened.”
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