An Essex tsunami victim was about to get the all-clear after treatment for a chest tumour when he was swept out to sea by the wave, an inquest heard.

Stuart Shields, 37, of Polstead, near Halstead, was snorkelling with his wife Tania, 35, in the Maldives when the tsunami struck. He was swept to sea and drowned. His wife, who was at the hearing, survived.

Yesterday's inquest at the Olympia Exhibition Centre in London heard he was about to be given the all-clear after being diagnosed with a large chest tumour ten years earlier.

Coroner Alison Thompson recorded that Mr Shields was a victim of the tsunami.

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Published Wednesday, December 7, 2005

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