AN Evesham man died on Saturday morning when his car left the road at Chadbury and turned upside down into a pond - the day after being told he had been promoted to Kwik Save store manager.

Alan and Angie Meddings, of Yew Tree Close, Evesham, said of their son David: "We were very proud of him. He just loved life. He will be sadly missed."

David was born in Germany while his father was in the army, and the family came to Evesham seven years ago.

David had a year at Evesham High School before going to Evesham College and then Coventry University where he graduated two years ago.

He then joined Kwik Save in Evesham until last February when he became assistant manager at Rubery.

"Last Friday he was appointed a manager and on Monday would have had his own store at Tipton," Mrs Meddings said.

"He had the ability to converse with the young and had the older generation eating out of his hand."

David was an avid Manchester United fan and while doing a project at university had the opportunity to tour the Old Trafford stadium. "He loved that," Mr Meddings said. While at college he became a director of a Young Enterprise project and started his own small business with a partner at home.

His brother Dan, aged 21, and sister Debbie, aged 20, live at home.

The funeral service takes place at St Mary's RC Church, Evesham, next Monday.

Family flowers only and donations will be put towards memorial benches and plaques in the Kwik Save stores at Evesham and Rubery.

Mrs Jeanie Heap, of Chadbury, noticed a fence had been demolished when she returned home from a shopping trip and on going to investigate and said: "All you could see was the car upside down in the water, and I rang the police.I had no idea how long it had been there but the water was so cold there was little chance of anyone surviving in it."

She described the road as "a death trap" and said she and others had for a long time been pressing for improvements to make it safer.

County councillor Clive Holt said: "I am pressing to find out what the county council is going to do about the road because of the danger, and also demanding the accident record for the road."

Some 18 months ago, he added, he was told the Government had altered the criteria and the long-awaited Squires Link no longer qualified for inclusion in the programme.

An inquest on Mr Meddings was opened by the Worcestershire Coroner, Victor Round, at Stourbridge on Monday when he said the evidence so far looked like an accident in which no other vehicle was involved.

"He left home at 6am to go to work as usual," he said. "About 8.10am the vehicle was found on its roof in a pond. The vehicle was recovered from the water and the deceased found inside."

Mr Round said the cause of death given by Dr Geoffrey Smith was drowning, and he adjourned the inquest to a date to be fixed.