An inquest has been opened and adjourned into the death of a worker killed at the Corus tin plate works in Llanelli on Thursday.

Francis Coles, a 42-year-old maintenance engineer, died in Prince Philip hospital, Llanelli, after an incident in the early hours of Saturday.

The accident took place at the Trostre plant

Detective Sergeant Gary Phillips, who is heading the investigation, told the inquest that a post mortem examination on the body had still to be fully concluded.

The police and Health and Safety Executive are conducting a joint investigation into the accident - Corus has also opened its own inquiry.

The inquest was adjourned to a later date.

Fellow workers at the plant have been offered counselling following the tragic accident.

Flags at Corus plants across Britain and the Netherlands flew at half-mast as a sign of respect.

Senior managers from the plant also visited the family of father-of-three Mr Coles in Five Roads, near Llanelli, to pay their respects.

A Corus spokesman said the managers offered their sympathy to the family.

The plant has an exemplary safety record and this has shaken everyone Corus spokesman

"The most important thing that the family did ask was to ensure that we got to the bottom of what exactly happened at the plant," he said.

"We assured them that we would do that, because it is important to ensure something like this never happens anywhere else," he added.

The Trostre plant, which employs 940 people, was also shut overnight following the accident.

"The plant has an exemplary safety record and this has shaken everyone," the spokesman said.

Long-serving worker

Mr Coles had been an employee at the plant for 15 years.

He worked in the cold reduction area of the mill which thins down stripped steel before coating it in tin for the beverage industry.

The accident follows the disaster at the nearby Corus plant in Port Talbot in November 2001, when three men were killed and another 12 injured in an explosion.

The number five furnace involved in the explosion reopened last week following a �75m reconstruction.