“DAVID was a great comfort to me and my main companion.”

These are the touching words of terminally ill Annie King, the mother of 48-year-old lorry driver David King who was found dead in the water at Poole two months after he disappeared following a work Christmas party.

Mr King, her carer since her first cancer diagnosis in 1996, was looking forward to the do as he left their West Moors home with an overnight bag on December 17, Bournemouth Coroner’s Court heard yesterday.

He and four colleagues at Wessex Water had checked into the Thistle Hotel, close to the festive bash at The Antelope Hotel. But Mr King, who had told his mum to put the lunch on if he wasn’t back by 10am, never returned to his room, sparking a massive police search.

In a statement, Annie said she believed icy conditions meant he slipped and fell into the quay.

“It was after a few days that I came to the conclusion he must be dead,” she said. “I have thought so many times how this could have happened as I have lain in bed trying to sleep.

“He was a loyal son who would not leave his mother in a despairing state waiting for news. He loved the sea and would have liked to walk along the side.”

Mr King, of Spinners Close, felt his driving job was “the best he’d ever had”, she added.

Detective Inspector Peter Little of Bournemouth CID said David’s colleagues thought he left the party after 12.30am, but it was one of the busiest nights of the year and he does not appear on any CCTV.

DI Little said: “Many talk of David being drunk, but not too drunk that he could not look after himself.

“He appeared to be in very good humour and came out of his shell a bit that night.”

Pathologists found no obvious cause of death after Mr King’s body was pulled out at the RNLI College in West Quay Road. There were no signs of disease, but his legs had multiple fractures.

Recording an open verdict, coroner Sheriff Payne added that he was not a swimmer.

“There’s no evidence to indicate that he was contemplating ending his life,” he said.