A FORMER Bolton man was fatally injured when he was involved in an accident with a fork-lift truck while working as an engineer in the Middle East.

Owen Bryne, aged 56, known to his friends and family as Pat, was hit by the truck in Oman last August, a Bolton inquest heard yesterday. Mr Bryne, a diver and keen photographer, was born in Dublin, but moved to Halliwell, Bolton, at the age of 13. He attended St Joseph's School, Halliwell, and worked in cotton mills before joining the RAF as an engineer.

He was posted around the world after marrying his wife Jill in 1972 in Lincolnshire. He left the RAF in 1994. His sister Christine Fraser, from Halliwell, said: "He was outgoing and loved Bolton."

The inquest heard that an investigation by police in Oman revealed that the fork-lift truck was being operated safely.

Bolton's Coroner Jennifer Leeming said the driver of the fork-lift truck was thought to be too shocked to recall what had happened. Recording an open verdict, Mrs Leeming said: "I do not have enough information to record any other verdict."