A Hampshire pensioner died after sustaining a fall while he was going for a walk in woods a Winchester Inquest heard.
Graham Donald Brown, aged 76-years-old, of Twyford, was out walking on a footpath in Compton near Winchester on the morning of January 27, 2017.
A dog walker, Louise Turner, saw Mr Brown walk down a steep wooded embankment and then fall over, out of view. Ms Turner ran to the track and saw Mr Brown lying on the ground among tree stumps and logs and called for an ambulance.
Despite attempts to resuscitate Mr Brown by Ms Turner, police and emergency services, he died before he reached Southampton General Hospital.
The pathologist Dr Al-Badri said that Mr Brown had external injuries to his face, cuts, and a fractured jaw but the main injury was to his neck. Mr Brown had suffered a broken larynx and fractures to his neck vertebrae which led to a cardiac arrest.
The senior coroner Mr Grahame Short concluded that Mr Brown lost his footing on a steep muddy track and sustained a fall which led to him injuring his neck on a hard object. This 'tragic accident' caused a cardiac arrest leading to his death. Mr Short gave a verdict of accidental death.
In order to remember Mr Brown, his relatives have offered to refurbish a bench near Field Way in Compton and to add a memorial plaque. The parish council have agreed to this proposal.
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules here