A couple who died when their car plummeted 300ft off a cliff near a well-known coastal spot were a bus driver and his wife who was so ill and frail she had hardly left home for two-years, neighbours have told .
The tragic couple – named locally today as John and Lynn King – died instantly when their silver Ford Mondeo, which also contained their two Dachshund dogs, drove off a cliff close to the Needles on the Isle of Wight on Friday evening.
John worked as a driver for local bus company, Southern Vectis, and knew the routes around the island well, neighbours said.
One local told how she had seen the couple – thought to be aged in their early 70s – just hours before they died.
John was helping Lynn into their car because she was struggling to walk unaided. The couple had their two Dachshund dogs with them.
The neighbour said: ‘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.
‘On Friday afternoon, some time between 4pm and 4.45pm, I saw John walk past my window.
‘He was helping his wife to the car. Their two Dachshund dogs were with them.
‘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 police turned up at their home around midnight on Friday night into Saturday morning.
‘I think what happened may have been planned. John drove for a living and knew these roads on the island like the back of his hand.
‘He’d mown his lawn for the first time in three years last Wednesday. Two days before he died. He’d never done that before ever.
‘But for some reason he only cut a small patch of the garden, close to the back of the house. I thought that was unusual.
‘To me, he seemed like he was getting things in order. Then on Friday he took his wife and dogs out in the car – which he never did before – and that was the last we saw of them.
‘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.’
The couple’s rented terraced home in Cowes is still being searched by Hampshire and Isle of Wight police officers.
Coastguard, police, firefighters and ambulance crews all rushed to the scene on Friday evening and photos showed them working to get to the car.
Witnesses said they watched on as a man was pulled from the wreckage and onto the shore. Response teams were then reportedly seen commencing CPR on one of the casualties.
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.
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 Dachshund’s, 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.’
On Friday, emergency services rushed to the scene and a winchman was lowered from the coastguard helicopter down to the bottom of the cliff.
The Hampshire and Isle of Wight Air Ambulance landed at Yarmouth where two ambulances, a critical care paramedic and Police had relocated awaiting the arrival of a casualty.
Two coastguard teams responded and were stood down in the early hours of Saturday morning.
The cliff sits near the world-famous Isle of Wight Needles, which is a row of three stacks of chalk that rise about 30 metres above the water.
Near the landmark is a small theme park with a viewing point and chairlift down to the beach, with views of The Needles.
The attraction brings in thousands of visitors every year and is one of the most popular tourist destinations on the island.
The Needles Landmark Attraction was closed by police at the weekend while emergency teams attended the incident.
Access to the beach, an observation tower and the Needles Old Battery fort were also restricted.