An elderly Llawhaden woman slipped into a ditch and drowned, an inquest into her death heard last week.

A major police search was launched after 76-year-old Pamela Joyce Weait disappeared from her home, Tymor Pedwar, Rockhill, last May, the inquest in Milford Haven heard last Thursday.

She was discovered in pasture land known as The Moor a few days later by a local farmer attempting to move a bush that had fallen into a ditch.

DC Andrew Cousins, based at Tenby police station, told HM Coroner for Pembrokeshire, Mr. Michael Howells, that Mrs. Weait was married with three grown-up daughters and had moved to the village with her husband, John, some 20 years ago.

Known as a warm and caring person, she used to enjoy long walks in and around the village, but had been suffering from the onset of dementia for a number of years.

This caused her not to recognise members of her own family, and she occasionally suffered from bouts of depression.

Her condition had worsened over the years and, when he found it 'difficult to cope', her husband John used to go to stay with friends in Swindon, leaving Mrs. Weait to be looked after by their daughters.

He had gone to Swindon in February this year and had talked about the possibilities of putting his wife in a nursing home in Narberth and selling up.

However, DC Cousins told the inquest that her daughters had said that Mrs. Weait had been showing signs of recovery and was against this idea.

On May 13, two of Mrs. Weait's daughters went to Tunisia for a holiday, making arrangements for their mother to be looked after by friends in the village.

The following day she had been visited by Jill Hitchings, a community support worker for the Pembrokeshire and Derwen Health Trust, who is based in Narberth, and Mrs. Weait told her that she intended to go for a walk later in the day.

When friends visited her home later, they received no answer. They believed Mrs. Weait to be in bed and had gone away.

When there was still no answer when they returned later, they let themselves in and, finding her missing, raised the alarm.

A search involving search teams, police dogs and the police helicopter was launched, but DC Cousins explained this was difficult as Mrs. Weait was known to walk over a wide area.

On May 22, local farmer Alan Thomas Llewellyn, of Ashgrove Farm, visited The Moor to tend to some calves pastured there.

He went to remove a bush that had fallen into a ditch and discovered Mrs. Weait under it, face down in the water at the bottom of the ditch.

DC Cousins explained that there was a log across the ditch which had evidence of scuff marks and his conclusion was that Mrs. Weait had been trying to cross the ditch via the log to head back towards the village when she slipped and fell.

Mrs. Hitchings, who had been calling on Mrs. Weait regularly since February, told the inquest that Mrs. Weait had been in good spirits, had talked about her daughters' holiday and was looking forward to her own holiday booked for October.

"She seemed quite happy and talked about going for a walk later in the afternoon," said Mrs. Hitchings. "I wasn't concerned about her, she didn't seem to have any problems."

A post mortem, carried out by Dr. Melville Jones at Withybush Hospital, gave the cause of death as drowning.

In recording a verdict of accidental death, Mr. Howells said that Mrs. Weait was a well-liked lady who had "unfortunately shown a degeneration of her mental facilities consistent with ageing."

She had been well cared for by her family and received regular visits from the health services.

"When she was last seen she was happy and well controlled in her demeanour. She enjoyed walking and had talked about going for a walk later that day.

"Nobody witnessed what happened later, so we have to make the best guess, consistent with the marks on the log.

"I'm not sure why Mrs. Weait should want to try and cross the ditch by such unsatisfactory means, but it is likely she slipped and fell and was trapped under the bush."