A MAN was killed after falling out of a first floor French door window which did not have a safety barrier in place, an inquest heard.

Neil Culpan, 60, from Driffield, East Yorkshire, died on October 22 at Scarborough Hospital.

An inquest into his death at Northallerton's Evolution Centre heard Mr Culpan had installed the French doors himself but had not yet fitted a Juliet balcony or barrier, and would sleep with the doors open.

A statement from his wife, Dawn Culpan, said: "On the evening of October 20 there was an electrical blackout, and only some lights came back on when we checked the fuses. We agreed to deal with them the next day.

"Neil went to bed at around 10.30pm and I stayed up. At around 12.30 I went out of the back door and heard a loud bang. I then heard a banging noise again and saw Neil. He said he had fallen out of the window."

Despite being in a lot of pain, Mrs Culpan said her husband refused an ambulance. She brought him a mattress downstairs and gave him paracetamol before checking on him again at 4.30am.

At this point Mr Culpan requested an ambulance. Mrs Culpan added: "The crews struggled to get him on a stretcher due to the pain and were working on him by torchlight because it was in an area of the house with no light.

"The ambulance crews were with us for around two hours, the first only had gas and air but the second brought morphine."

Mr Culpan had broken 12 ribs, punctured both lungs, and broken his collar bone.

Mr Culpan died in the early hours of the following morning at Scarborough Hospital due to the major trauma to his chest which took the brunt of the fall, resulting in a heart attack.

Mrs Culpan said: "He was intending to put in a Juliet balcony but never got round to it. He insisted on having them open at night, even though I always told him he would fall."

The inquest heard there was very limited space to manoeuvre between the bed and window.

Coroner Michael Oakley recorded a conclusion of accidental death.

He added: "Mr Culpan survived the fall but suffered serious injuries, exacerbated by a pre-existing heart condition."