The inquest into the death of a husband and wife who died whilst on holiday in Egypt opened today, five years on from their deaths. 

John Cooper, 69, and Susan Cooper, 63, from Burnley, died whilst on a Thomas Cook holiday in the Red Sea resort of Hurghada on August 21, 2018.

Tomorrow, their family, including daughter Kelly Ormerod and granddaughter Molly Ormerod, will finally receive answers as to how the couple died.

Senior coroner Dr James Adeley opened the case by apologising to the family for the case taking so long to reach the Coroner's Court during the hearing at Blackburn Town Hall.

He stated a representative from Thomas Cook will not attend the inquest due to the company going bankrupt in 2019.

Daughter Kelly apologised to the court, stating her memory was not as good as it was five years ago, but was able to assure that her parents were both "fit and healthy" before the family holiday.

She said: "My dad always played with my three children and loved to stay active. He was not someone who could sit on the couch.

"My mum was the same, she cared a lot about her appearance and was very glamorous.

"They were both fit and healthy until we went on the holiday."

The pair were staying at the Steingenberger Aqua Magic Hotel, a well reviewed hotel on online travel websites.

Their all-inclusive holiday had been booked through Thomas Cook, where Mrs Cooper had been a ‘long-standing' member of staff at the Bureau Exchange.

The couple had requested their room's air-conditioning to be fixed on August 17, four days before their deaths, the court heard.

The court heard that a witness from the next room to the couple stated he had heard the hotel had been repairing all of the air conditioning units, after John, Susan, and grand-daughter Molly complained about a 'pasta' like smell in their room.

A statement from German traveller Dominic Bibi also stated his mother-in-law's room, adjoined to the Coopers', had been treated with a pesticide known as 'Lambada'.

Lambda-cyhalothrin is a synthetic insecticide used to control a broad range of insect pests such as bed bugs.

Tomorrow the court will hear from mortuary doctors at Royal Blackburn Hospital, where the couple were transferred to, and experts on the pesticide, to conclude whether or not this was associated with their death.

Dr Adeley said: "This is one of the longest cases I have ever worked on, and it is so complicated with a lot of information.

"I express my deepest condolences to the family."

The inquest into the deaths of John and Susan Cooper will conclude tomorrow.