A WAR hero with dementia died on Remembrance Day after wandering into a ditch on his farm and drowning, an inquest heard.

Aubrey Bernard Garton, 85, was found dead in his pyjamas clutching a bramble branch on "a bitterly cold night" at Slade Green Farm in Over Alderley, the coroner was told.

A police helicopter led the search for Mr Garton, whose body was found before dawn on Sunday, November 11, last year.

It what was the third time Mr Garton, a retired mechanical engineer and part-time farmer who had Alzheimers, had wandered off lost, an inquest at Macclesfield Town Hall heard.

Mr Garton had fought in the Second World War during which he nearly died during an explosion, according to Dr Geoff Roberts, assistant deputy Coroner for Cheshire.

"He had a fairly heroic time and sustained very severe injuries," he said. "Following one episode in battle, where he was blown up, he was injured to the extent that a priest was sent to perform the last rites; he was subsequently promoted."

Mr Garton's son, Tim, who lives nearby on White Barn Farm, Over Alderley, told the inquest his dad "loved the countryside" and was still working part-time as a farmer until his death.

Dr Douglas MacDonald, Mr Garton’s GP, said in a written report that his patient was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s in 2005 and had got lost while out walking twice before his death.

Sergeant Kevin Fryer, of Macclesfield Police, led the search after Mr Garton was reported missing by his wife Sheila, 88.

Sgt Fryer told the coroner: "We found a slipper at the back of the house leading out into farmland, and we decided an air search was needed.

"He was obviously not dressed for the weather; it was a bitterly cold night, and he was old."

A helicopter search team used thermal imaging equipment to scour the area, and led dog handling officers to the body, the inquest heard.

Sgt Fryer added: "We found Mr Garton in a ditch that was filled with water. It was about four to five feet deep with more than two to three feet of water. There was a scrape mark on the bank. He was wearing pyjamas, and had a bramble branch in one hand."

There were no suspicious circumstances surrounding the death, the coroner was told.

Pathologist Dr Sally Hales carried out a post mortem and concluded that Mr Garton had drowned.

At the inquest, Dr Roberts recorded a verdict of accidental death, and commended the police for their search efforts.