Pub landlord electrocuted on dream trip to India while trying to get ‘perfect photo’ of Himalayas
Inquest hears 71-year-old pub landlord was fulfilling lifelong dream of visiting India
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.A popular landlord died after being electrocuted “in pursuit of the perfect photograph” of the Himalayan mountains while on a dream trip to India, an inquest has heard.
Ivan Brown, landlord of the Murderers in Norwich, Norfolk, died while on holiday with a close friend in India earlier this year.
An inquest into his death heard that Mr Brown had electrocuted himself while attempting to steady himself using an overhead cable - which he was unaware was live.
The accident happened in the district of Chamba after the 71-year-old had clambered onto a low roof as a vantage point to take a photograph overlooking the mountain range.
The court heard Mr Brown was six weeks into an eight-week Indian trip with his friend David Linder, with the pair fulfilling a lifelong ambition to visit the nation.
The pair had already visited several sites including Delhi and the Taj Mahal, not stopping in one place to ensure they saw as much of the country as possible.
The incident happened in Baikunth Nagar near Dalhousie on 2 April.
Mr Linder said: “We were just a couple of septuagenarians backpacking across India to discover the history, culture and geography of a fascinating country - although in reality we were staying in hotels and driving.
“As we were leaving our hotel we found the most stunning view and asked our driver to pull over.
“Ivan was always in pursuit of the perfect photograph and reached up on a cable not realising it was live.”
The shock caused Mr Brown to fall backwards, hitting his head on the wall below.
Mr Linder added: “I believe he died instantly.”
Area coroner for Norfolk Yvonne Blake concluded that Mr Brown‘s death had been an accident.
Mr Brown was from of Upper King Street, Norwich.
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments