A WOMAN who was knocked unconscious while leading a carnival procession has warned those responsible that she could have been killed.

Jackie Waters, from Dovercourt, was leading the Harwich Guy Carnival procession, along with other members of The Harwich Society, when she felt a heavy object smash into the left side of her face.

Mrs Waters, 57, said: “We were carrying lighted torches at the head of the procession to lead the way and suddenly I was hit in the face by a flying object, which was thrown so hard it knocked me out.

“Whoever threw it did so with terrific force, as it hit me very hard in the face.”

A carnival spectator was seen throwing what onlookers believed to be a frozen orange at Mrs Waters, who was knocked to the ground and rendered unconscious as her head hit the pavement.

She said: “It is unbelievable. It was a malicious attack and if it had gone in my eye or mouth it could have killed me.

“It sounds dramatic, but it was such a blow that it knocked me off my balance and knocked me to the floor.

“If it had been a child taking part or an elderly person it could have been very nasty.”

Mrs Waters, who has suffered severe bruising to her right checkbone and the right side of her body, said she was treated at the scene by ambulance crews but refused to attend hospital.

Norman Corey, spokesman for the Harwich and Dovercourt Rotary Club, who organised the event, said: “It was a silly thing to do, which marred what was otherwise, a great event enjoyed by all.”

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