Liverpool City Council contributed to the deaths of a couple in flash floods.
Philip and Elaine Marco both drowned in August 2023 when their Mercedes car became mired in a section of Queens Drive that was prone to persistent flooding.
The retired caterers from Mossley Hill had been driving home from their son’s 40th birthday party and were just days from celebrating their 54th wedding anniversary.
Four previous incidents of flooding had occurred in the same area between May and July of that year, requiring emergency rescue for stranded car occupants..
An inquest at Gerard Majella Courthouse heard that Mr Marco, 77, was seen trying to carry his wife, 76, away from the danger before disappearing beneath the water.
Council chief executive Andrew Lewis said ‘substantial work’ had since been carried out to reduce the risks of caused by future flooding.
But the Marco family criticised council bosses for ‘accepting no responsibility’ for the inaction that culminated in their parents’ deaths which had ‘deepened’ their grief.
Senior coroner Andre Rebello recorded death by misadventure after the couple’s car became flooded within moments of it hitting the water at 9.23pm.
He said: “The delay in introducing signage and barriers is found to be a failure, as such measures are likely to forewarn drivers of the risks, including the risk to life.”