A JUDGE told his wife I'll be OK' just minutes before he was swept to his death in last week's floods.

An inquest yesterday heard Eric Dickinson's last words, spoken to his wife Gillian in a frantic telephone call as his car was overwhelmed by water at Pershore.

His green Volvo estate was swept away as he tried to cross Bow Brook Ford in Walcot Lane, Pershore, on a short-cut home from work at Evesham County Court.

Worcestershire County Coroner Victor Round revealed: "Mrs Dickinson had a call from him saying, I've done something even more stupid than losing my wallet. I've driven into some water. I thought I could drive through it but the car's getting swept away'.

"He went on to say, I will be okay' and jokingly said I'll swim'.

"But he went on to say, You will have to make a call to help me here'."

Mr Round said the 68-year-old, of Leigh, near Malvern, said he was somewhere between Pershore station and Drakes Broughton. He said after Mrs Dickinson called the fire brigade she tried to call her husband, but got his answerphone.

"At about lunchtime he had rang his wife to say he was buying food for supper because he was going to finish early," he added.

"For some reason he decided to take a short cut from Pershore to Drakes Broughton, but Mrs Dickinson says he knew the area well and was in the habit of choosing random and different routes home."

Mr Round said Mr Dickinson had undergone a triple heart bypass and had heart disease, which probably made him "succumb more quickly". The car was not found until about 24 hours later at 2pm on Tuesday, June 26, when a rescue team probed the water with poles.

He said it was about 75m downstream from where it disappeared, in about 2m of "murky water". Mr Round said PC Stephen Fry, who found Mr Dickinson, revealed the car's sun roof was open and the judge's seat belt was undone.

He said the car doors appeared to be locked, which could have been because of the water pressure.

Mr Round said no road closure signs were in place.

He said there was a flood sign and depth marker, although he said a police officer confirmed the latter was not as visible as a road sign.

Mr Round said the cause of death was immersion in flooded river water in a motor car, with a contributory factor being heart disease.

A verdict of accidental death was recorded.