Inquest fails to find cause for incident that led to three deaths

THE CAUSE of an incident at Dunboy Castle earlier this year in which three young friends drowned when their car toppled into the sea remains a mystery, an inquest in west Cork heard yesterday.

Colum Harrington (21), Shane Kelly (20) and Fintan O'Driscoll (17) all died in the incident in front of the castle near Castletownbere in the early hours of March 1st. Yesterday, the inquest into their deaths heard that none of the young men had taken alcohol or drugs and there was no evidence to suggest why the car being driven by Shane Kelly had swerved suddenly towards the sea.

The two young men who survived the tragedy, Cillian O'Sullivan (19) and Greg Harrington (18), gave eyewitness accounts of what happened. They gave evidence that Shane Kelly was driving the car, Colum Harrington was the front-seat passenger and the other three were sitting in the back. Mr Kelly drove up and down by Dunboy Castle on numerous occasions on the night, pulling handbrake turns at each end of the road.

Greg Harrington said that as the car travelled along the road in front of the castle, he felt the right front wheel clip the grass. The car continued at an angle towards the sea before coming to a stop at the edge where it hung for a few seconds before falling in, nose first.

He said the car tipped on to its roof and filled with water in a matter of seconds. He and Cillian O'Sullivan managed to release their seat belts and swim to the surface. They got into Greg Harrington's 4x4 and rushed to Castletownbere to call for help, as their mobiles were gone.

Cillian O'Sullivan said Mr Kelly was driving at about 25mph and they were all chatting just before the incident occurred. "I looked up and noticed the car starting to skid across the grass . . . the whole thing happened so fast. We all screamed. The car rocked three times on the edge and fell into the water on its roof. It filled quickly with water."

When rescuers arrived they had to cut the victims from their seat belts to free them, but there was no sign of life. Colum Harrington, West End, Bere Island; Shane Kelly, Allihies, and Fintan O'Driscoll, Foildarrig, Castletownbere, all Co Cork, were all pronounced dead at the scene at 2.30am.

Garda Mark O'Connor, forensic collision investigator, said he found no evidence to suggest a reason for Mr Kelly to have suddenly swerved out towards the grass between the road and the sea. That the driver may have attempted a handbrake turn was a factor to be considered, taking into account his driving before the incident.

However, Garda O'Connor pointed out that Mr Kelly had not attempted such a manoeuvre at this spot previously. The garda said the fact that the car hit the seabed nose first and ended up upside-down was a major factor in the deaths, as it would have been very difficult for them to free themselves from their seat belts or get their bearings.

The inquest heard the 1997-registered Ford Fiesta was roadworthy before the incident.

Pathologist Dr Margaret Bolster told the inquest that all three men died from acute cardiorespiratory failure due to drowning. She noted that none of them had been drinking or taking drugs, and they had sustained no head or other major injuries. Michael Quinlan, the solicitor representing the Kelly and O'Driscoll families, made an application for the inquest to be adjourned. He said the investigation was ongoing on behalf of both families and he might want to bring a witness to give expert advice.

Acting coroner for west Cork Frank O'Connell agreed to adjourn the inquest until December 1st, 2008. He expressed deep sympathy to each of the bereaved families.