Manchester woman had 20kg stone slab fall on her head

Esther Clyne was celebrating a friend’s 70th birthday at a party at Featherstone Castle in Northumberland when she was hit with the slab.

The 54-year-old thought she’d died when the stone fell more than 30ft from a doorway and shattered on her head.

She said she was lucky to be alive but the mum-of-two has long-lasting side effects following the incident.

The stone fell more than 30ft from a doorway (Image: SWNS)

Four years later she is still experiencing bouts of dizziness, memory loss and lack of balance.

Esther, who works in a school and helps run a charity, said: “It felt like a slab fell on my head. My head was just ringing and it was really loud.

"It was a few minutes before I realised and then the blood started rushing. This slab had slid off and hit me directly on my head.

“I thought I was dead.

“There was a woman looking directly at me when it happened. She was crying her eyes out. She couldn’t believe I was alive.

“The ambulance man couldn’t believe I was alive. The injuries that I had. They instantly couldn’t believe how well I was. They said I shouldn’t be here.

"I'm definitely lucky to be alive.”

Esther's x-ray shows the damage to her head (Image: SWNS)

Esther was enjoying a birthday party in December 2019 when the stone slab fell onto her.

She added: "It was early hours and I was going to bed. It was such a freaky thing happened. A woman I met that night said a marquee had blown up and smashed a window.

“I was on my way to bed, someone told me to see what happened outside. Reluctantly I went out.

"My son Leon was beside me and as I stepped out the doorway I thought a bomb had gone off. It felt like I'd been hit by a bus.

“It was an almighty noise and my whole body shunted down. Luckily I was stood straight."

The impact has changed Esther’s life and worsened her current myalgic encephalomyelitis symptoms, she says.

Esther was celebrating a friend's 70th birthday when the stone slab fell onto her head (Image: SWNS)

She said: “I was left debilitated because of the dizziness and the pain. I spent thousands on professional medical treatments and therapy.

“It left like a deep hole. They stuck glue on my head, I thought I was going to die. I was convinced, I thought I had a brain bleed because of the impacts. I slept sat up for weeks. If I heard a bang I'd be cringing.

“It gave me ME-like symptoms. Dizzy and fuzzy, my memory was shot completely. My balance went, I was dropping things.

“My osteopath has given me a brace because my neck hurts. He calls me Saint Esther, he said it’s a miracle.

“That could’ve been my life taken."

After court proceedings, Featherstone Castle has been cleared of any blame in relation to the incident and SWNS has contacted the castle for comment.