Tragic End for Bury’s First Lollipop Lady Killed on Road She Fought to Protect
A former lollipop lady who spent decades campaigning for safer roads has been fatally hit by a van on the very street she fought to protect. Irene Allen, 87, was struck on Walmersley Road in Bury last Wednesday, December 6. She passed away five days later in Salford Royal Hospital.
Road Safety Campaigner Dies After Horrific Crash
Ms Allen was Bury’s pioneer lollipop lady. Back in the 1960s, she fought local councils to install safer crossings on the busy Walmersley Road — all to shield schoolchildren from danger. But fate cruelly struck her down on her own patch.
“Irene never fully recovered consciousness, despite the best efforts of Salford Royal Rescue and ICU teams,” said her daughter, Melanie Allen. “Always putting others first, Irene complained to Bury Council in the mid 1960s about the lack of safe crossings for schoolchildren across the busy Walmersley Road, and became Bury’s first lollipop lady. This tragic irony continues to haunt us today.”
Community Mourns ‘Sunny’ Local Hero
Irene leaves behind her daughter and three grandchildren. Melanie added that Irene will be remembered fondly by “a whole community that misses her sunny personality.”
Police Hunt Hit-and-Run Driver
Greater Manchester Police are still hunting the van driver who fled the scene. Officers urge anyone with dashcam footage from the area to come forward immediately.
