'She saw the beauty of the world' says Northamptonshire mum at inquest into her daughter's death in Thailand

Bryony Freestone died aged 19 while swimming off the coast of Koh Chang in Thailand on Sunday, August 14, this year.

Miss Freestone, from Little Houghton, had been living in Falmouth, Cornwall, as a University of Exeter student, having taken her A-Levels at Wollaston School.

She had been working with Marine Conservation Cambodia, carrying out research into the effects of illegal trawling on seagrass. She had travelled on to Thailand with friends.

A brief inquest held in Northampton on Wednesday morning was told that Miss Freestone’s body was discovered on the beach by a hotel. CPR was performed on her, but she was confirmed dead when she arrived at the nearby clinic.

It is understood she had gone swimming in the sea alone.

Statements from the Thai authorities said no witnesses on the beach had seen her in the water, but a post mortem showed she had drowned.

In a statement read out at the inquest, her mother, Fiona, described Bryony as ‘gregarious and outgoing’ and that Bryony was always laughing and smiling. She added: “She knew it was good for the soul and she lived life with a smile.

“She saw the beauty of the world and wasn’t afraid to chase after it.”

County Coroner Ann Pember, who said there was little information available to her in this case, recorded a verdict of accidental death.