construction zone was awarded damages totalling $97,191 in Supreme Court yesterday.

Mr. Peter Manuel Clark, who was left with a severely disfigured leg, was also awarded interest and costs.

Puisne Judge, the Hon. Mr. Justice Ward, said Telco "gave no adequate warning'' to westbound motorists when it blocked Harrington Sound Road with a ladder and traffic cones on March 11, 1991.

The Telco crew was installing facilities for the summit between the British Prime Minister John Major and US president George Bush.

Mr. Clark crashed his motorcycle in front of an eastbound tractor trailer which had pulled into his westbound lane to avoid the obstruction.

In his judgement, Mr. Justice Ward said Telco was 40 percent liable for the accident, while Mr. Clark was also 40 percent liable. Truck driver Mr. Stephen Henry Johnson and his employer, Island Construction and Landscaping Services Ltd., were together deemed 20 percent liable.

Costs are to be paid two-thirds by Telco and one-third by Mr. Johnson and Island Construction, he said.

Mr. Ward awarded Mr. Clark general damages of $40,000, medical expenses of $42,846, $646 for repairs to his motorcycle, $500 for loss of clothing and shoes, and $13,200 for lost wages.

Mr. Clark, who sat in the courtroom with his wife Annmarie as the judgement was delivered, said he was pleased, but surprised Mr. Justice Ward attached 40 percent blame to him.

When the accident happened, Mr. Clark was travelling at 40 to 45 kilometres an hour before slowing to 30 to 35 kilometres per hour as he approached the bend leading to Shark Hole Hill, the court was told.

When surprised by the tractor trailer approaching in his lane, he downshifted, braked, skidded and crashed. Mr. Clark suffered a badly broken and "now grossly disfigured'' left leg. He lost time from his job as a chef and can no longer jog or play golf, tennis, squash or soccer.

Under cross-examination, Mr. Clark admitted he should have been driving more slowly and could have passed the tractor trailer without crashing.

In addition to signs warning motorists to slow down, the Telco crew had erected caution signs to the east and west of its work site, but they were not properly positioned to alert traffic, Mr. Justice Ward said.

While the accident was due to "a combination of causes,'' Telco's duty "was to take reasonable steps to prevent the obstruction which was on the highway from becoming a danger to the public.''