A RETIRED Barnard Castle postman knocked down and killed by a bus was nearly four times over the legal drink-drive limit, an inquest heard.

Russell Hodgson, 60, of Birch Road, walked into the path of a bus being driven by Donald Fishwick, the husband of former Darlington mayor Rita.

He had been drinking in the Commercial Hotel and the Three Horseshoes pubs in Barnard Castle the night before the accident, although it was not clear where he had stopped overnight. Tests on Mr Hodgson's blood later revealed that he had 311mg of alcohol in 100ml of blood. The legal limit is 80mg.

The inquest hearing yesterday, at Darlington Magistrates Court, was told how Mr Hodgson had been crossing the A67 Galgate road at Barnard Castle, just before a pedestrian crossing, at about 7.20am on 18 June last year.

The driver of the bus, Mr Fishwick, who has been a bus driver for more than 30 years, was on a school run in a single-decker bus owned by Stagecoach, although the bus was empty at the time.

He was later cautioned and interviewed by police and said he was driving at 20mph in a 30mph zone when the accident happened, although his speedometer was not working at the time.

In a statement, Mr Fishwick said: "I saw the gentlemen approach from my right.

"He walked across the road, stopped, our eyeballs met and then he just stepped in front of me. I braked immediately on impact and stopped straight away."

Witness Hayley Newton told how she heard a thud as the bus hit Mr Hodgson, and when she saw what had happened went to get help.

Minutes later Mr Hodgson was pronounced dead at the scene by a doctor. He had suffered severe head injuries.

Darlington and South West Durham Coroner Colin Penna, recording a verdict of accidental death, said Mr Hodgson's death was a "sad story" and he recognised the considerable level of alcohol found in his blood. However it was not his role to determine who was responsible for the accident