A TRAIN engineer who would cut asbestos string with his teeth died of lung disease an inquest heard.

Brian Ascough, 66, died on June 5 from mesothelioma, a tumour of the lung lining, after spending years working with asbestos.

Coroner Kenneth Howe heard that Mr Ascough, of Tomlin Street, Shildon, joined the British Rail engineering works in North Road, Darlington, in the 1950s.

His wife, Margaret, told the inquest at Bishop Auckland: "He would work on the boilers and cladding pipes. They used to use asbestos string and he would snap it in his teeth."

Darlington and South Durham Coroner Kenneth Howe recorded a verdict that Mr Ascough's death was due to industrial disease