AN "EXTREMELY hard working" grandfather died after a fall at the village shop in Barton Stacey, an inquest has been told.

Eric Broadway tripped and fell at the shop on February 18, 2020, and was taken to Basingstoke and North Hampshire Hospital.

During the 92-year-old time in hospital, he acquired pneumonia on a number of occasions, with a bout in April leading to his death on April 20.

An inquest at Winchester Coroner's Court heard that following his fall, Eric had been lying on concrete outside the shop for around 90 minutes, and was said to be “shivering but alert” by paramedics.

He was taken to Basingstoke hospital, where it was revealed he had fractured his femur in the fall. Following an “uneventful” operation, he developed hospital-acquired pneumonia, which was treated with antibiotics. Subsequently, he suffered from chest pain to his left side, which indicated a potential minor heart attack.

Following his care at Basingstoke, he was moved to Andover War Memorial Hospital, where he was again treated for pneumonia, and had also developed a urinary tract infection.

On April 5, Eric was moved to the Royal Hampshire County Hospital, in Winchester, where he was said to be “drowsy.”

He developed pneumonia again and suffered from water on the lungs. An attempt at sampling this fluid caused a lung collapse, which coroner Samantha Marsh said was a recognised outcome of such a procedure.

Despite a mild improvement on April 14, he was said to be “frail” by the following day, with his condition deteriorating. Eric died at 4.50am on April 20.

His death was unrelated to the Covid-19 pandemic, with numerous tests showing him to be negative for the virus.

Paying tribute to her husband, Muriel Broadway, Eric’s wife of 69 years, said that he had spent his whole life working in agriculture, and “could turn his hand to any technical job.” He was “extremely hard working and conscientious,” teaching himself mechanical engineering.

Outside of his work, Eric enjoyed metal detecting, photography and wood turning, as well as maintaining his garden of half an acre. Eric and Muriel moved to Barton Stacey in 2018, where she said he was “frustrated” at being able to do less as he aged. Eric was later diagnosed with the early stages of Alzheimer’s disease in January.

A post mortem carried out on his body said his death was caused by pneumonia, with the femur fracture and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease given as associated causes.

Ms Marsh concluded the Eric's death was accidental.