Reclusive sister died without brother knowing

Two elderly Co Mayo sisters lived such a reclusive lifestyle that when one died it remained a secret not only to the local community but also to a brother with whom they shared a rural bungalow, an inquest was told yesterday.

Supt John O'Driscoll told an inquest at Westport into the death of 70-year-old Ms Agnes Lyons, Carrowneadan, Aughamore, Ballyhaunis, whose remains were not found until a year after she died, that Ms Lyons and her sister, Ms Mary Ellen Lyons, lived in " a world apart".

Some neighbours had not spoken to the sisters for up to ten years in some cases, Supt O'Driscoll stated.

He said the sisters purposely cut themselves off from those outside and ensured the minimum of contact with their brother Mr Michael Lyons. Notes written by Ms Agnes Lyons on scraps of cardboard were referred to at the inquest. The messages indicated that Ms Lyons was deeply religious and determined that she would never be separated from her sister. Supt O'Driscoll said the evidence was that Ms Agnes Lyons was in poor health for a considerable period of time and died in a bed that she had not left for a long time.

"Her death took place in a room that was unheated, damp and where the most squalid of conditions prevailed."

Dr Ken Keane from Kiltimagh gave evidence of finding the dead woman in a decomposed, skeletal state in a room with cartons, papers and tins strewn all over the floor.

The dead woman's brother, and sister gave evidence at yesterday's hearing. In a statement read to the inquest, Mr Michael Lyons explained that while in the house he spent most of the time in the livingroom. The women would keep out of sight. They would leave him notes with shopping lists. Mr Lyons said the last time he saw Agnes face to face was when she came home from hospital on Good Friday in 2000. Mr Lyons discovered the body after Ms Mary Ellen Lyons became ill on the morning of August 4th last and he went to inform Ms Agnes Lyons in her bedroom.

"When I saw what was inside I pulled back middling quick," Mr Lyons said in a statement read to the inquest. He then made a phone call for medical assistance.

Ms Mary Ellen Lyons said in a statement read to the inquest that Ms Agnes Lyons had been unwell for years but never attended a doctor or hospital. She had put a religious scapular and religious medals on her leg. She used to drain a sore on one leg herself. She got so unwell that she could not get out of bed. The witness said there was one bed in the room which she shared with her sister. "I don't know when Agnes died and I can't say how long she was dead before her body was found."

The witness said she was sure no one mistreated her sister and added: "I looked after Agnes while she was unwell. Agnes was always writing for Masses. I did not see what she was writing but I knew she was writing to a number of convents."

Ms Lyons said that before she went to Castlebar Hospital she used to sleep in the bathroom. She could have been sleeping there a number of weeks.

A neighbour of the Lyons family, Mr Tom Garvey, said the last time he spoke to Agnes Lyons was at a wedding nine years ago.

"They were a very modest family," Mr Garvey stated. "There is no way that Michael would open the door of a woman's room. They wouldn't even watch the television if there was a woman on it. They were from a different era."

Supt O'Driscoll told the inquest that the evidence suggested that when speaking to her brother Ms Mary Ellen Lyons purposely created an impression that Ms Agnes Lyons was still alive and that there was no reason for him to have concerns about her own state of health. He continued: "It is most probable that Mary Ellen's poor state of health contributed to a situation whereby she failed to deal with her sister's death in the appropriate manner and in accordance with law."

He stressed that no prosecution would be issued. The inquest jury returned a verdict of death by self-neglect. The cause of death was unknown, the jury decided.

The coroner, Mr John O'Dwyer, said it was clear from the evidence that Mr Lyons did all that he was permitted to do in helping his sisters.