ASBESTOS used for brewing equipment triggered the industrial disease that claimed the life of popular Weymouth sailor Bill Ludlow, a coroner said in Dorchester.

Deputy West Dorset Coroner Alan Horne heard that Mr Ludlow, who was 74 when he died at Dorset County Hospital in Dorchester in July, worked at the Devenish Brewery in Weymouth from 1961 until 1987.

Former head brewer Peter Hill said asbestos was present in insulation used for hot water and hot liquor tanks. It was sealed and any damage was always quickly dealt with.

Diane Ludlow said in a statement to the inquest that her husband had suffered from asthma and allergies but had been a fit man and a keen sailor.

They went to Australia in February and she noticed the flights affected her husband’s breathing badly. Later they went on a sailing holiday to Scotland where her husband had to be treated for a strangulated hernia. While in hospital staff looked for the cause of his on-going breathing problems. The investigation continued after they returned home to Friar Waddon, near Weymouth But it was not until after his death that mesothelioma was detected.

Mr Horne recorded a verdict that Mr Ludlow died from an industrial disease. He said: “He experienced all aspects of working in the brewery and it’s likely he did come into contact with asbestos.

In her statement, Mrs Ludlow paid tribute to her husband who was a magistrate and the chairman of Weymouth and Portland National Sailing Academy and who was awarded the MBE in 2006.

She said: “He was a lifelong sailor. He enjoyed life and was loved and respected by everyone.”