A popular teacher died after being hit by an early-morning train, a coroner heard.
English teacher Stephanie Elizabeth Brettle, who was 53, died instantly in the incident at a level crossing on February 5, 2019, an inquest heard.
At the hearing on Tuesday her family said Ms Brettle often used the route to get to the beach and raised fears she may not have been paying attention, NorthWalesLive reported.
Ms Brettle, who taught English at Ysgol Emrys ap Iwan in Abergele, Conwy, was struck by the Holyhead to Manchester service just before 6.30am. She was pronounced dead at the scene having suffered massive traumatic injuries.
An inquest in Ruthin on Tuesday heard a statement from the train driver who said it was dark when he saw her near the gate at the Ty Gwyn crossing.
He sounded the horn but she appeared to run in front of the train in an act he thought was “deliberate”, the hearing was told.
Ms Brettle’s car was found parked not far away. An investigation found no suspicious circumstances.
The inquest heard Ms Brettle had recovered from breast cancer and had recently undergone a divorce from her long-term partner, which had affected her.
She had been put on anti-depressants but a post-mortem examination showed there were none in her system at the time of her death.
Work colleague Kirstin Lorey said Ms Brettle had been struggling with anxiety and insomnia and had said to her: “When will it end?” and: “When will it stop?”. She said Ms Brettle appeared “hollow” and “resigned”.
Asked by senior coroner for North Wales east and central John Gittins whether she thought Ms Brettle, of Trem y Mor, Abergele, may have done this deliberately Ms Lorey responded: “Yes.”
But Ms Brettle’s family disagreed and said she would regularly visit the area walking to the beach. They pointed to her being in a new relationship, appearing happy just before the tragedy, and having attended a recent concert.
Her brother Gary McKeown said as it happened so quickly in the dark the train driver may have misinterpreted what he saw. Ms Brettle was having trouble sleeping, Mr McKeown said, may not have been paying attention when the train came and had little time to react.
“She was happy – I can’t see this being a deliberate act,” he said.
Mr McKeown’s partner, Sue Davidson, suggested Ms Brettle may have been trying to avoid the train, which would have been very difficult to see.
Mr Gittins said he had been presented with two different versions of what may have happened and whether the death was an accident or suicide.
But he said “the evidence doesn’t fully support one version or another” and “with an element of regret” recorded an open conclusion.
Ms Brettle’s dad, Terence McKeown, said: “She was loved by everybody. One thousand people attended her funeral.”
Her daughter Emma Jane Brettle also said she was a “kind, strong, happy woman,” who had endured some tough times in life.
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