Highgrove worker died falling down hidden well
A WOMAN who worked on the Prince of Wales’s Highgrove estate died after falling down a well in her garden that had lain undiscovered for many years, an inquest heard yesterday.
Irena Nadiotis, 58, was gardening at the back of her Grade II listed property in Tetbury, Gloucestershire, when the ground underneath her collapsed and she plunged 50ft down the well.
Her body was only discovered when her daughter, Madelaine, looked out of an upstairs window and noticed a hole in the courtyard. On going out to the garden, she found her mother face down and submerged in water. An inquest in Gloucester heard she was believed to have fallen down the well two hours before she was discovered.
A post mortem examination found her head and neck were congested, and her lungs were over-inflated, which are all characteristics of drowning.
Sergeant Adam Williams, who attended the scene, said he spoke to Mrs Nadiotis’s daughter who said she had no idea the well, which was located under the flagstones of the 17th century property’s rear courtyard, existed.
Senior coroner Katie Skerrett called it a “tragic accident”.
At the time of her death, Mrs Nadiotis was described by Highgrove staff as being a “cherished” team member.
Conclusion: accidental death.