Groom-to-be, 31, died just months before his wedding when he was larking around at a family party and fell off a WASHING LINE, inquest hears
- Adam Ashby, 31, suffered a coma-inducing brain injury and died on May 27
- He climbed up a ten-foot washing line pole to impress friends but it broke
- Heartbroken fiance Abbie Wildeman, 27, is now having to cancel their wedding
A groom-to-be died months before his wedding when he was messing around at a family party and fell off a washing line, an inquest has heard.
Adam Ashby suffered a fatal brain injury after falling from the top of the washing line that he climbed to show off to his family and friends at a birthday party.
The 31-year-old climbed up a ten-foot washing line pole to impress friends at a gathering on May 26, but fell off and landed head-first onto a patio – in front of his family and friends.
He suffered a coma-inducing brain injury and ambulance crews were called to rush him to King’s College Hospital in London but he died the following day.
Adam Ashby, 31, died months before he was due to marry Abbie Wildeman (pictured holding a photograph of the couple together) when he was messing around at a family party and fell off a washing line, an inquest has heard
His heart-broken fiancee Abbie Wildeman, 27, was due to marry the alarm engineer from Maidstone, Kent, next January.
She said: ‘It’s been devastating and so hard.
‘He fell right in front of me, my friends, and my family.
‘They were having a few beers and a laugh.
‘Being a bit of a Jack the lad, he was climbing up the washing line but fell because the top was too weak.’
Ms Wildeman, who now lives in Rochester, Kent, has been going through the agonising process of calling off her venue booking, telling caterers they are not needed, and cancelling her wedding dress order.
He suffered a coma-inducing brain injury and ambulance crews were called to rush him to King’s College Hospital in London (pictured) but he died the following day
The mother-of-three said he will be fondly remembered and added: ‘He was a joker, he was really funny – a class clown personality.
‘He was a worker and a family man.
‘Although he wasn’t the father of my children he treated them as if they were his own.’
An inquest at the Archbishop’s Palace in Maidstone heard evidence from his brother, David, who said Mr Ashby would often take recreational drugs in a party environment.
He said: ‘Adam was messing around, he always liked to play the clown.
‘He wanted to show off and make people laugh.’
A post-mortem gave a traumatic brain injury and skull fracture as the cause of his death.
The fall from height and cocaine, ketamine and midazolam use were given as contributing factors.
Assistant coroner Joanne Andrews concluded Mr Ashby’s death was an accident.
She added: ‘I’d like to express my condolences to the family at what must be an incredibly difficult time.’