A 22-YEAR-OLD man died on a railway crossing following a drinking session with his friends, an inquest heard.

Stuart Turner was meant to go to a party on March 20 and he and two friends decided to sit in Barlaston train station drinking, waiting until it was time to go.

The inquest heard it was something they had done before, but Stuart strayed on to the railway tracks as a Virgin Pendolino service approached at 110 miles an hour.

He died of multiple injuries and his body had to be identified using fingerprint records. His blood alcohol reading showed a figure of 352. This compares with a legal drink drive limit of 80.

Hartshill Coroners' Court heard how the train was travelling from London to Manchester at the time of the accident. It was 10 minutes behind schedule. At 7.56pm the train driver reported seeing a figure crawling across the tracks. The figure then stopped moving and stayed on all fours, turning to look at the train seconds before the impact.

Detective Michael Millward, of the British Transport Police, said: "I interviewed Stuart's two friends who had been with him that day.

"The two were chatting when they noticed Stuart wasn't there. They saw him going down the slope and were screaming to him to get off the tracks."

He said both friends were certain Stuart, of Blackthorne Road, Boley Park, Lichfield, had not been trying to commit suicide. They believed his foot was stuck in a slatted area which is meant to prevent people going on to the tracks.

North Staffordshire coroner Ian Smith recorded a verdict of accidental death.