THE family of a popular Cleethorpes pensioner who died after apparently collapsing at the wheel of his car have paid tribute to his kindness and hard work.
Arthur Wardle, 83, of Penshurst Road, was praised by another motorist who saw him seemingly trying to steer his car out of the way to avoid oncoming cars and prevent further casualties.
He was pronounced dead at the Diana, Princess Of Wales Hospital, Grimsby, after his car crossed over Humberston Road, Cleethorpes, and hit a hedgerow shortly before midday on Friday.
Mr Wardle was married to Brenda, who died three years ago, and he had four children, Richard Wardle, Lisa Mitchell, Craig Davidson and Diane Shiplee.
Mrs Mitchell, of Cleethorpes, said: "He was lovely. He would do anything for anyone.
"He was very clever and could make anything, particularly with wood, and whatever you asked him to do, he would just produce it.
"He never had a bad word to say about anybody. He was a gentleman.
"He had lived in his house since it was built in the 1950s. He bought it brand new."
Mrs Mitchell added that she was pleased to read a comment left on the Grimsby Telegraph's Facebook page from Sandra Holt, who wrote that the family of the driver ought to be proud of him because of his "selfless" actions in steering his vehicle away from other cars.
The comment read: "We were in the car behind him. The old chap's family want to be proud of him."
Mrs Mitchell said: "That was a really nice touch. That made us feel better. We are proud of him."
She added that the family did not yet know whether her father had fallen ill at the wheel before his death.
"We won't know until the post mortem," she said.
"They seem to think he has had some sort of medical episode but we don't know what."
Mrs Mitchell said that Mr Wardle was a retired docker.
"He worked on the docks from his early 20s, as did his father and grandfather," she said.
Mr Wardle was born in Grimsby and was one of 12 children – six boys and six girls.
"All the boys worked on the docks," she said.
"His brother, Alan Wardle, died recently and his funeral was just full of ex-dockers."
Mr Wardle had six grandchildren, Scott Davidson, Natalie Henderson, Jemma Bullivant, Charlotte Hall, Isobel Mitchell and Jacob Mitchell.
"They all absolutely adored him," said Mrs Mitchell.
"His main interest was his family. He was loved. Nobody ever had a bad word to say about him.
"He was very proud of his family. His family meant everything to him. He still has several surviving siblings. Looking after them, seeing them and making sure everybody was OK was one of his priorities."
His son, Richard Wardle, said: "He was generous to everybody. He was a true hard worker.
"Everybody who knew him said he was a grafter, not a shirker.
"He had a reputation on the docks for that as well as in his personal and family life."
The pensioner's green Peugeot was travelling along Humberston Road from Hewitt's Circus and crossed over the eastbound carriageway and over a pavement into a hedge.
It was close to a private road used by residents in Denby Drive.
Paramedics from East Midlands Ambulance Service battled to save his life.
Following the single-vehicle collision, Humberside Police closed Humberston Road at the junction with Hewitt's Circus and a diversion was set up at Brian Avenue.
Sergeant Chris Wright appealed for any witnesses who saw the green Peugeot prior to the crash, to contact Humberside Police by calling 101 and quoting incident number 229.
![Family tribute to 'generous and lovely' Cleethorpes pensioner Arthur Wardle]( "Family tribute to 'generous and lovely' Cleethorpes pensioner Arthur Wardle")
