THE family of a volunteer driver who died after a tree fell on his hospice ambulance in strong winds say his death has left “a great hole” for all who knew him.

George Brown, 68, who was a driver for the Butterwick Hospice, in Bishop Auckland, died instantly when the tree toppled during Monday afternoon’s high winds on the A688 near Dunhouse Quarry, between Staindrop and Barnard Castle.

A statement issued yesterday on behalf of Mr Brown’s widow, Mary, children Keith and Amanda, and grandchildren Lorna, 19, Rebecca, six, and Connor, two, said: “His fun-loving outlook on life will be missed, and his contribution to his volunteer work has left a great hole for all who knew him.”

Mr Brown, of High Etherley, near Bishop Auckland, had been on his way to Barnard Castle to pick up patients from the Butterwick’s facility at the Richardson Hospital when the accident happened.

His passenger, fellow volunteer driver Peter Foster, 68, from Crook, suffered non life-threatening injuries in the accident.

Graham Leggatt-Chidgey, chief executive of the Butterwick Hospice, said staff at the hospice were all shocked and saddened at Mr Brown’s death and they hoped to create some kind of permanent memorial to him in the near future.

Meanwhile, David Knight, from High Etherley, who was a friend of Mr Brown for many years, said: “George was very well known in the area.

“He was a good friend to everyone I know and he always had a smile on his face. He was the kind of chap who would do anything for anybody.

"I have never heard him say a bad word against anyone.

When my mother died and her house needed emptying quickly, it was George who got a trailer and attached it to the car and we did it in a day.”

Roz Brown, who owns the post office in the village, added: “He used to come in here quite regularly to pick up the Butterwick Hospice collection box when it was full. He always made the effort, he was a lovely man.”

Any witnesses to the accident are asked to call Durham Police’s accident investigation unit on 0345-60-60-365.