Retired couple died in bath - Coroner

Couple sharing a bath both died when a man had a heart attack and dragged down his wife. Photo / iStock

A retired Auckland couple who were sharing a bath both died when a man had a heart attack and dragged down his wife, who drowned.

Coroner's findings have shed light on how Louis Ng and his wife Chiu died in 2013.

On the night of October 16 that year, family members found the bodies of Mr Ng, 78, and his wife 81, in their motel room.

The couple died at the Deco City Motor Lodge in Napier, where they were on holiday.

The couple were retired market gardeners who lived in Auckland.

Mr Ng had a history of ischaemic heart disease, hypertension, peptic ulcer and other maladies.

An autopsy found Mr Ng had scarring of the heart muscle and another condition that would have impaired blood flow to his heart.

The coroner's newly released findings showed he died suddenly, collapsing and pinning his wife in the water.

The coroner said Mrs Ng also had multiple illnesses, and her "mild dementia" may have stopped her acting in a co-ordinated manner when she found herself immersed.

Police were satisfied there were no suspicious circumstances behind the couple's death.