A coroner has concluded the death of a pensioner who fell from the first floor bedroom window of his home was ‘accidental’.

Retired joiner Paul Hindley suffered head and chest injuries after the four-metre fall at the property in Archallagan Terrace in Foxdale on February 15 this year.

An inquest was held into the 71-year-old’s death at Douglas Court House on Wednesday which heard how Paul’s health deteriorated after he was diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease.

Acting coroner Rachael Braidwood read out evidence relating to the tragic incident including a statement from Paul’s wife Lynn Hindley.

Lynn described how she and Paul had been married for 43 years and he had retired from his work as a joiner in 2012 after undergoing a major operation. He became a diabetic following the surgery and a few years later his health seemed to go downhill.

Lynn said: ‘About four years ago I noticed changes in Paul’s behaviour and something was not quite right. He became less tolerant and lacked empathy. He became isolated and lost interest in his hobbies, such as wood crafting.

‘Two years ago he was diagnosed with Parkinson’s and the deterioration was rapid.’

Paul’s mental health went downhill and he spent much of his time in bed. He started having delusional thoughts and became paranoid.

‘I knew he was not going to get any better and it was a case of managing his illness as best I could,’ Lynn said.

On the night of February 14 this year, Lynn gave Paul his medication as usual and, at 10pm, he went to bed after they had a quick chat. The couple slept in different rooms due to Paul’s condition.

She was woken up by the dog at around 6.30am on February 15 and went down to take it out. She noticed Paul’s door was still closed.

But when she went outside she saw Paul lying on the path. She rushed over but found he was unresponsive and called 999.

On the instruction of the call handler, she carried out CPR before the emergency services arrived and took over. Sadly, Paul was pronounced dead a short time later.

In a further statement Lynn said Paul suffered from low moods and once self-harmed but there had been no further such incidents.

She said her husband always insisted on having the bedroom window closed but she said the hinge was loose and easy to open.

One neighbour said she heard shouting at around 1.30am on February 15 but could not see anything when she looked outside.

Both the forensic medical examiner Dr Maric Thorpe and pathologist Dr Irvine Long concluded Paul died of head and chest injuries consistent with a fall from height. Dr Long also says hypothermia was a contributing factor.

Mrs Braidwood ruled out suicide saying: ‘Why Paul opened the window I cannot say. He can only have fallen by leaning out and losing his balance.

‘There was no evidence that on the day Paul intended to bring about his own death. A correct verdict is one of accidental death.’