Airport worker who sued after falling over bag withdraws case

A customer services team member at Dublin Airport who claimed she was injured when she fell over a passenger’s bag has withdrawn her High Court action.

Bridget Davis (56), of Garlow Cross, Navan, Co Meath, claimed her pastime as a keen golfer had been affected by the injury caused to her knee in the fall in Terminal Two on July 7th 2015.

The case opened on Wednesday when CCTV video of the accident was shown during cross-examination of Ms Davis. She said she had only seen it for the first time on Wednesday. The case was adjourned when the judge suggested she have a look at the video overnight.

On Thursday, Eugene Gleeson SC, for Ms Davis, told Mr Justice Michael Hanna the case was being withdrawn and could be struck out with no order required.

Ms Davis sued her employer ASC Airport Services Consolidated, the operators of the terminal, Dublin Airport Authority, and ground handling service provider, Swissport Ireland.

The defendants denied her claims of breach of duty by, among other things, failing to provide a safe place of work, allowing passengers waiting to board to randomly queue in areas adjoining departure gates and failing to properly monitor and supervise waiting passengers.

Ms Davis was carrying out “bussing operations” - in which passengers are brought to and from aircraft - and making her way through a narrow corridor of passengers when in an area to her right a queue of passengers waiting to board started to move.

It was claimed that, suddenly and without warning, as she was abreast one of those passengers he kicked a bag into her path causing her to trip or fall heavily onto her knees and chest.

She was out of work for three months after and was diagnosed by her GP as having a mild degree of disability in kneeling, bending and squatting.

She said she was a keen golfer but was unable to play for the remainder of 2015 and only returned playing on a few occasion in 2016 and to date because of pain in her knee. She was able to do so when she received injections for the pain.

Under cross examination she agreed she had competed in two golf competitions including one in which she came second with the Royal Tara in Co Meath last July. She had also competed in a team competition as recently as three weeks ago.

On Wednesday, she said she did not know whether the bag was pushed out or kicked out but that it had “shot into my path”.