South Wales PoliceA woman who fled the Russian invasion of Ukraine was killed while walking home from work, and on the phone to her friend, an inquest has heard.
Tetiana Martynova, 40, from Kharkiv, moved to Swansea in 2022 with her son, 13.
An inquest heard she was hit by a car on Neath Road, Morriston, after finishing work on 31 January 2024, and “thrown some distance” towards the opposite carriageway.
The friend she was talking to “heard a thud” and assumed Ms Martynova had dropped her phone.
She was transferred to the University Hospital of Wales, Cardiff, where she died of a catastrophic brain injury on 1 February, with the cause of death given at the Swansea inquest as a road traffic collision.
The driver of the vehicle, Tata steelworker Jamie Hitchings, was returning home after working a 6am to 6pm shift at the steelworks, the inquest heard.
Mr Hitchings said he had not seen Ms Martynova, who was dressed all in black and crossing in an “uncommon part of the road”, until immediately before the collision.
He said he slammed on his brakes before getting out of the car to help Ms Martynova.
Mr Hitchings then used some nearby cones to block off the road while attempting to get a response from Ms Martynova.
Giving evidence, PC Karl Painter, a forensic collision investigator for South Wales Police, said only one street light was illuminated.
He said the surface along the 50mph (80km/h) road was wet with “restricted visibility” due to the amount of rain falling, the darkness of the location, and the topography of the road.
Swansea council also confirmed to the police that street lighting was switched off at the time, as part of national energy reduction measures, which involved the switching off of lights after a risk assessment.
South Wales Police reviewed the circumstances and decided to take no further action.
Colleague and friend, Michelle Howells, worked with Ms Martynova in an accounts role and said she had seemed happy on the day, sharing her plans of moving back home to Ukraine in time, as her role allowed her to work remotely.
Dr David and Catherine Lloyd hosted Ms Martynova when she and her son arrived in the UK, and previously said they saw her as their own daughter, adding that they were “heartbroken” she was no longer with them.
Ms Martynova was described as having a “warm and engaging personality” and was highly regarded by her employers RunTech, who had promised her future employment online when she returned to her home country.
The couple said in a statement that she was “very conscious of road safety and competent at crossing roads, knowing which way to look, and had perfect eyesight”.
They last saw her on 27 January when she treated them to brunch after receiving her first elevated pay cheque.
Assistant coroner Paul Bennett noted that Ms Martynova had been dressed in black clothing in an “uncommon” crossing area which was not lit with streetlighting.
He concluded Ms Martynova’s death had been caused by a road traffic collision.
