A WOMAN pushing a pram was injured when she fell backwards off an escalator.

The accident happened as the shopper, who was in her 50s, stepped on to the escalator leading from the market to The Mall in Blackburn.

She suffered injuries to her neck and elbow and was put on a spinal board with a neck brace before being taken to hospital. The toddler with her did not need treatment.

The escalators were stopped while paramedics helped the woman and screens were put up for privacy.

The Mall’s security staff and bosses kept crowds moving.

One worker at the Curry Stall said emergency services were at the scene for around 40 to 50 minutes yesterday lunchtime.

She said: “I did not see her fall, but I saw all the people crowding around her. I hope she is okay.”

Lorraine Jones, general manager at The Mall, said: “There are warning signs on the escalator itself and there is also a stand-up board right next to the escalator pointing towards where you would go on that says do not take prams or pushchairs on escalators.”

The woman was taken to the Royal Blackburn Hospital.

A spokesman for the North West Ambulance Service said: “We got a call at 12.34pm yesterday to the market at The Mall shopping centre in Blackburn. There was a single patient and the fall was accidental. She had spinal tenderness and was comp-laining of neck pain.”