The circumstances behind the drowning of a Merchant Navy engineer from Prudhoe in the Caribbean remain a mystery, an inquest has heard.
Ben Burgess, 25, was on shore leave when he was found dead in Oistins, in Barbados in April 2019.
Ben, who moved from Yorkshire to Prudhoe, Northumberland, would work three months in the Caribbean and then return home for three months.
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An inquest at North Yorkshire and York Coroner's Court heard a post-mortem examination concluded Ben died from a head injury and drowned.
Assistant coroner for North Yorkshire Jonathan Leach recorded an open conclusion.
The conclusion means there is insufficient evidence to decide how the death came about. The case is left open in case further evidence appears.
At the time of his death, Ben's fiancée Rebecca Pattinson paid tribute to her partner saying "there was always a smile on his face".
She added: "There are no words to describe him and do him justice.
"He was just happy, so, so happy. There was always a smile on his face. He was always up for having a drink with anyone."
Ben and Rebecca were planning their future together when his life was tragically cut short.
"We had picked out engagement rings and had just moved back to my mam's because we were saving for a deposit," she said.
"We were making plans for the future."
The couple met when they were studying marine engineering at South Shields Marine School.
Friends organised a pirate themed event after his death to raise funds for safety equipment in the spot he lost his life.
Ben was originally from Ilkley, West Yorkshire, and went to Prince Henry grammar school, in Otley.
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