Crane operator died from head injury after fall in kitchen

A CRANE operator died from a head injury after falling in his kitchen, his inquest has heard.

Kevin Victor Cheneler was found by his partner after she returned from work to their home in Alexandra Court, Overseal, on January 21.

His inquest, held at Derbyshire Coroner’s Court, heard that the 56-year-old was alcohol dependent and would drink around a litre of whisky a day. He had previously suffered after falls and his family would regularly return home to find him on the floor.

On the day he died, his partner returned home at around 6.35pm to find him on the floor in a pool of blood. He was not breathing and she called 999.

The last time he had been seen alive was by his daughter at around 3.45pm when she left for work. She had tried to encourage him to get into bed or onto the sofa before she left.

The ambulance service called the police to the scene as his death was unexpected and due to how he was found. A police investigation found no suspicious circumstances.

A post-mortem examination found he died from the head injury and toxicology reports found severely elevated levels of alcohol in his system, finding he had a reading of 368 milligrams of alcohol in his blood and 544 milligrammes in his urine. The legal limit for driving is 80 milligrams of alcohol per 100 millilitres of blood.

Gresleydale Healthcare Centre, Mr Cheneler’s GP practice, said he had refused help from the alcohol services in the past and had previously been taken to hospital with injuries to his hip after a fall. Surgery had been performed on his hip and he was on crutches when he had the fall. The practice said he was unwilling to seek help for his alcohol addiction, the inquest heard.

Coroner Peter Nieto said Mr Cheneler died at his home address on January 21, 2022, due to a severe head injury after a fall in the kitchen. He was intoxicated at the time with “very, very high” levels of alcohol in his system.

He said it was likely that it was due to his intoxication and because he was on crutches due to an infection in his hip that caused him to fall. Mr Cheneler had previously suffered from falls.

Mr Nieto found that Mr Cheneler died from a head injury caused by a fall due to alcohol intoxication. He recorded a verdict that his death was accidental.

Mr Nieto said to the family of Mr Cheneler: “My condolences for your sad loss. It must have been terrible to walk into the house and find Kevin like you did.”

If you need help:

■Drinkline is the national alcohol helpline. Call 0300 123 1110 (weekdays 9am to 8pm, weekends 11am to 4pm).

■Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) is a free self-help group. www.alcoholicsanonymous.org.uk

■Al-anon Family Groups offers support and understanding to the families and friends of problem drinkers, whether they’re still drinking or not. www.al-anonuk.org. uk/

■The National Association for Children of Alcoholics (Nacoa) Call 0800 358 3456.