I dislocated my finger after I tripped – it’s all the council’s fault as they took weeks to fix broken slab
A MUM dislocated her finger after tripping over a loose paving slab.
Debbie Rees' bones were left jutting out at a stomach-churning angle following the fall in Bridgend, south Wales - and she says the blame lies wholly with the council for failing to fix the issue.
The 54-year-old had been out with her daughter Jemma in the town of Maesteg when she took a tumble.
Thankfully she managed to catch herself before hitting her head, but Debbie was left "bruised and swollen" with a finger facing the wrong way.
The nasty dislocation saw her rushed to hospital for urgent care - and now she is desperate for the authorities to act so the same thing doesn't happen again to someone else.
Debbie, from nearby Caerau, told : "We had been to Wetherspoons for coffee and we were on our way back to the car park.
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"We were just walking ready to go around the corner by the Blue Pearl and that was the last thing I remember.
"I didn't hit my head, but I did hurt my shoulder, dislocated my finger and grazed my knees.
"The bruise is terrible and it is swollen. It’s all strapped up and I’ve got to go back to the fracture clinic when they’re going to X-ray it again."
Debbie's husband Ian reported the uneven pavement to their local councillor and shared a warning to others on Facebook.
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The slab in question, which has allegedly already been highlighted as a potential hazard, sits close to a pedestrian crossing meaning it is in frequent use.
Ian said: "Just like to say thank you to the staff in the Blue Pearl, the builders on the town hall and anybody else for helping my wife after she had a fall outside the Blue Pearl.
"Apparently she isn’t the first to fall on the broken paving slab which has been reported to the council for a number of weeks.
"A few cuts and bruises and a dislocated finger. It could have been much worse. Thank you all."
His post was met with scores of comments from people encouraging Debbie to make a claim.
One woman added that she had also "almost gone flying"; several weeks ago when she fell "flat on her face" by the zebra crossing.
Maesteg councillor Ross Thomas said he too had reported the problem, which he described as "needing urgent attention" as "the setting of it has clearly failed".
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A Bridgend County Borough Council spokesperson said: "A cracked slab was reported by a local member on April 6 at this location.
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"It was checked and confirmed by highways staff on April 7, and is currently in the process of being repaired."
