A SOLDIER who survived a bomb blast in a war zone was killed when a military vehicle rolled over him at an Eden training base.

Sergeant Mark Colin Foley, of The Light Dragoons, died on June 4 last year after being thrown from a modified Land Rover (RWMIK) which was travelling just 500 metres to a debrief area at Warcop Training Area, near Appleby.

An inquest at Kendal heard that he joined up at 16 and served several tours abroad, escaping death in 2007 when his vehicle was blown up by an Improvised Explosive Device in Afghanistan.

Having just commanded a shooting practice, the 31-year-old was sitting in the passenger seat of the Land Rover and was not wearing a safety harness when the driver lost control of the vehicle on the crest of a hill, causing it to plunge to the right into a one metre deep ditch.

It rolled one-and-a-quarter times and came to land on the passenger side - leaving Sgt Foley with fatal multiple injuries and Lance Corporal Joshua Osborne with serious spinal and facial injuries.

The father-of-two died at the scene shortly after the crash.

At the inquest, Cumbria's assistant coroner Alan Sharpe said: "To go through all the dangers in an army career and to lose his life on a training exercise is truly tragic."

He recorded a conclusion of accidental death but told the hearing it was important that the details were 'elaborated upon'.

The inquest heard the driver, Trooper Dominic Paylor, lost control of the RWMIK due to his inexperience.

Mr Sharpe added the fatal injuries Sgt Foley, of Norfolk, suffered were a result of his failure to wear a safety harness.

It was suggested that he may have lived had he been strapped in.

"The circumstances leading to him not wearing a safety harness in my view was that it was at the discretion of commanders, and in practice it was common for commanders not to wear them, especially in training exercises," said Mr Sharpe.

Trooper Paylor was the only soldier of the three to be wearing a seatbelt and was the only one left uninjured.

The coroner said he intended to make a Section 28 report to the British Army for it to consider action with regards to the training of drivers and the enforcement of standing orders - which included the wearing of safety harnesses.

Representatives from the Ministry of Defence said measures had already been taken to re-enforce current standing orders.

Paying tribute to her childhood sweetheart in a statement, Sgt Foley's widow Kelly Ann said: "Thank you for letting me experience true love."