Inquest into death of Rob Walton
36-year-old was on holiday in France with family
A FAMILY holiday in France ended in tragedy when a former rugby player drowned while bodyboarding in the Atlantic Ocean.
Robert Walton, who stood at 6ft 9in tall, used to play for Hinckley and Coventry rugby clubs before becoming head coach at Rugby Lions.
The 36-year-old building surveyor, of Desford, had been enjoying a camping holiday in Labenne, in the south west of the country, with his wife and four children when tragedy struck.
An inquest held at Loughborough Coroner’s Court on Thursday ruled that Mr Walton’s death – on Monday August 10, 2015 – was the result of an accident.
His widow Gemma has told of her horror at realising a body that washed up on the beach in front of screaming holidaymakers was that of her husband.
Giving her account of events, after a documentary inquest where evidence was summarised for the court by Coroner Carolyn Hull, the 41-yearold said: “It was the second full day of our holiday and we’d decided to spend the day on the beach.
“It was about 12.15pm when we arrived.
“There were about 200 other people on the beach – sunbathing and swimming, with children playing in the sand.
“I’d been out bodyboarding with my stepson Jake, who was 10 at the time, while Rob stayed with my daughter Ruby, then eight, and our daughter Lilly, three, and baby son Gabriel, one.
“The sea was quite calm once you got past the breaking waves and we experienced no problems whatsoever.
“We came out after about 10 minutes and Rob said he wanted to have a go.
“He went down to the water’s edge where Ruby was playing.
“She said she wanted to stay there so he went in on his own with a bodyboard attached to his wrist.”
The inquest heard that Mr Walton was last seen paddling out into the sea by his older daughter before he “disappeared out of sight”.
Mrs Walton continued: “It was about 12.45pm when the children started to worry about where their father was.
“Ruby had come back with Jake and said she’s seen him go over a wave but didn’t come up.
“I was looking for him but couldn’t see him anywhere.
“I thought he could have wandered down the beach to look for shells or ice cream – or fun activities for the children – it wouldn’t have been unlike him.
“The kids then went to asked a lifeguard if they’d seen him but they said no.”
Moments later, the full extent of the tragedy became clear.
“It was about 15 minutes after we’d last seen Rob and I was starting to get worried,” Mrs Walton said.
“I said to Jake to run up to the top of the sand dune to get a better view.
“Rob was so tall he wouldn’t be hard to spot. "It was then that I heard screaming and saw people surge towards a spot about 100 yards down the beach.
“Jake shouted ‘It’s Dad’ and I ran down the beach and saw Rob lying there.
“Lifeguards were trying to resuscitate him and I was pulled away.”
Lifeguards and doctors performed CPR and mouth-to-mouth resuscitation on Mr Walton, but to no avail, and he was pronounced dead on the beach. Mrs Walton said: “It was totally surreal. “One moment he was playing with the children and the next he was lying dead on the beach. “I can’t really describe how I felt. I was shocked and numb. It was absolutely horrific. “Rob’s death has devastated our family and we are still struggling to come to terms with our loss". A cursory examination was carried out by French authorities before Mr Walton’s body was flown home to England, where a full post-mortem examination was carried out at Leicester Royal Infirmary by pathologist Dr Yvonne Littler. In her report, she noted “bruising and abrasions to the chest and top of the head, which suggest contact with sand and gravel on the seabed” but revealed no “skull or spinal fractures” or other physical injury that would suggest Mr Walton having been knocked unconscious while in the sea. There was no evidence of natural disease that could have caused or contributed to his death and toxicology tests for alcohol and drugs returned negative. Microbes from seawater and marine vegetation were found in Mr Walton’s lungs, spleen and other organs – confirming a medical cause of death as drowning. A verdict of accidental death was recorded by Ms Hull, who offered her con- dolences to Mr Walton’s family and friends.
For Mrs Walton, the hearing provided some form of closure, but she said questions still remained.
Early reports from France had suggested that Mr Walton had been hit by a “freak wave” which broke his spine.
Mrs Walton said: “I have no idea where that came from, but the French doctors did say they thought Rob had hit his head on something.
“But I didn’t realise until we spoke to the coroner back here that no postmortem examination had been carried out in France. I assumed it had.”
She added: “Maybe he did hit his head but it wasn’t enough for anything to show up.
“If he was in trouble he would have shouted.
“I suppose we will never fully know for sure, but I can’t fault people on either side of the Channel for all their help, support and what they did for us.
“It does offer some closure and I’m glad it’s over now.”
Paying tribute to her late husband, Mrs Walton said: “Rob – who was also known affectionately as Big Yog – was a gentle giant.
“He was a loving husband who adored the kids. He was their climbing frame.
“In many ways I feel for them more than myself as they were so young at the time and will have to grow up without a dad.
“Our lives were torn apart in the most bizarre twists of fate, but the kids are fine and we’re trying our best to rebuild our lives without Rob.
“More than 650 people turned up for his funeral – that’s how highly thought of he was and he is sorely missed.”