A 20-month-old child suffered a severe head injury and later died after she was thrown against the dashboard of a car which collided with a gate pillar, Dublin City Coroner's Court has been told.
The child, Lauren Dockery, of Glebe Court, Rathangan, Co Kildare, was being held by the front seat passenger in the car when the collision occurred at Ellistown, Rathangan, on March 31st last. She died at Beaumont Hospital on 7th April.
Ms Lisa Kelly told the inquest that her mother had been minding baby Lauren for about 18 months. On the day of the accident she was looking after Lauren as her mother (Mrs Kelly) was attending a funeral. That evening she drove to collect a friend and they were going to Ellistown to visit another person. She allowed her friend to drive and she was holding the baby in the front seat. She was not wearing a seat belt.
There was a child seat in the back of the car but it was not used as it was not secured by the seat belt.
At Ellistown she believed the car hit a pothole, went out of control and struck the pillar of a gate into a farm. The baby was thrown against the dashboard.
Garda Andrew Kavanagh said there was a large pothole on the road which had been filled in since the accident but he added it might not have played a part in the accident as it was on the other side of the road.
Sgt Brian Byrnes, a PSV inspector, stated the car was in good pre-accident condition.
A post mortem examination showed death was due to a severe head injury and the jury returned a verdict of accidental death.