THE widower of a popular teacher who died in an accident at Kielder has added his weight to a campaign for all HGV lorries to be fitted with compulsory reversing cameras.

Daniel Gilchrist’s wife Isabel, aged 63, died after a HGV lorry reversed into their stationary motorbike on a country road near the village in June 2018.

Mr Gilchrist (66), suffered serious injuries in the collision.

A court case last month, where HGV driver Andrew Reed was found not guilty of causing death by dangerous driving, heard that the lorry had been fitted with an on-board reversing camera, but it had not been working at the time.

Now, Mr Gilchrist is backing a campaign by one of his late wife’s former pupils to make it a legal requirement for reversing cameras to be fitted and operational on any large vehicle.

A petition has been launched online by Lynda Stevenson, who claimed Isabel’s life could have been saved by a reversing camera.

She said: “The world was a better place for having had Isabel Gilchrist in it.

“It would still be a better place had it been for one thing – a reversing camera on that lorry. That is why I believe this should be a legal requirement on any large vehicle, to stop this happening to anyone else.”

Mr Gilchrist believed his late wife would have wanted the law to change.

He added: “Isabel was an amazing, kind and passionate woman who, when she saw something wrong, did something about it.

“Let’s do something about this gap in the law. If that camera had been working on that lorry, the driver would have seen us on the motorbike, and Isabel would still be with us today.”

The accident happened on the C200 in Kielder on June, 25, 2018.

Daniel is being represented in his personal injury claim by Leigh Day solicitors.

Solicitor, Laura Murphy said: “Daniel lost his wife and he suffered serious injuries in the collision on the country road in 2018.

“He and fellow campaigners believe that if the tipper lorry’s on-board cameras had been working that day, the driver would have seen the motorbike and would not have reversed his vehicle, with catastrophic results.

“A change to the law would be a fitting tribute in memory of Isabel, who is missed so desperately by her family and friends.”