Driver killed in New Year's Day roundabout crash reached 111mph after drinking an inhaling laughing gas
A young man who died in a crash on New Year's Day drove at 111mph after drinking alcohol and inhaling laughing gas, an inquest heard.
Watch more of our videos on ShotsTV.com
and on Freeview 262 or Freely 565
Keiron Roy Smith, aged 21, was driving friends Armani Williams and Kyra Heywood home from a night out at Pussycats nightclub in Wellington when he crashed a Volkswagen Golf R in nearby Whitchurch Road in the early hours of the morning.
An inquest into his death at Shropshire Coroner's Court in Shirehall, Shrewsbury, was told that Mr Smith drove straight over a roundabout with Haybridge Road and all three people in the car were ejected from the vehicle due to not having put their seatbelts on properly.
Mr Smith, who worked as a road maintenance technician, died at the scene, while Mr Williams and Miss Heywood were taken to hospital with serious injuries.
A toxicology report showed that Mr Smith had 147 microgrammes of alcohol per litre of blood in his system. The legal limit in England and Wales is 80mcg. He also tested positive for nitrous oxide, more commonly known as laughing gas.
Records from a telematics device showed that Mr Smith had driven at 111mph before the crash.
A witness statement from Mr Williams, who was sitting in the front passenger seat of the car, was read to the courtroom by Heath Westerman, deputy coroner for Shropshire, Telford and Wrekin.
Mr Williams said that he had been given lifts by Mr Smith a number of times before and that he had "always felt safe".
On the fateful night, Mr Smith picked up Mr Williams and Miss Heywood to go to the nightclub. Their journey was uneventful, though Mr Williams said he saw "balloons" in the back of the car. After parking up, Mr Williams said he shared a balloon containing nitrous oxide with Miss Heywood, while Mr Smith inhaled one to himself.
