The trial continues at Nottingham Crown Court of farmer Paul Waterfall who denies a charge of manslaughter by gross misconduct, causing the death of Roger Freeman who was attacked by a bull while on a public footpath at Underhill Farm Stanford on Soar.
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Robert Smith and colleague Christopher Robinson, of Central Networks, had attempted to carry out emergency electrical repairs but were chased off by the bull.
Mr Smith told the court how the drama began that night when they had heard a loud bellowing sound as they went to the pole in the field. He saw a brown bull with big horns standing up 30 to 40 metres away “It wasn’t happy, to say the least,” Mr Smith told the court. “It soon made tracks toward us… pretty much instantly. It was sort of galloping down the field.”
Mr Smith shone his torch to dazzle the bull, while Mr Robinson assembled rods that they were to use on the job, to hold out in front. The bull butted the rods and pushed Mr Robinson into the hedge backwards, leaving just the rods poking out.
Jurors listened to a call from Mr Smith to his control room to report their predicament and loud animal noises could be heard in the background. Waterfall was contacted by the control centre and arrived with the tractor. The men dived into the bucket on the front and were driven out of the field.
After rescuing the two engineers Paul Waterfall said that the animal “kept ramblers on their toes”.
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